Rokudaime
by Selunchen123
Summary: It was his fault that his blood was on his hands, and so was her leaving him too. What does a certain Hokage do when the world of Konoha and his own is starting to crumble before him…? [NaruSaku][ShikaTema][NaruHina]
1. Book 1 Chapter 1

_The first time he saw her like that, it scared him half to death. Her clothes ragged and hair messed in a brute manner. She was covered with rashes, open wounds; especially the one that went from her elbow to her shoulder was nasty. _

_The rain clashing down hard upon both of them, and even with the bijuu inside of him he felt terribly human. Her hard breath told him how hard she had fought, how many wounds she had had to heal, and just how many scars she would get when they got home.  
He had promised her that they would go home. _

_However, what worried him the most was the sword that went through her stomach and out on the other side. She looked horribly bruised and ugly, and it reminded him so much of the Chunnin exam. _

_She bit down her lip and slowly and carefully pulled the sword out. It didn't help much that he had almost electrocuted her with the Chidori when he stabbed it through her. Sakura just couldn't make herself hate him. _

_The emerald eyes weren't fixed on her blond-haired friend, but on the body of the snake prince, Uchiha Sasuke. With a swift move she turned her head upwards and closed her eyes.  
Naruto was already crying…- _

_-…So he didn't notice when she slowly began to sob that way. Her whole body shook, the horrible feeling of just standing there fully soaked, with tears streaming down your face, while you cried out loud._

_  
Naruto was even worse; he cradled the body of his friend within his arms and sobbed loudly as possible. A no could be heard repeatedly, he just couldn't bear it.  
They could have stood there for hours, while the dead person's body finally lost the remaining warmth and the muscles began to stiffen. Sakura had seen many dead people, but she had never wanted to witness this._

_  
When she stopped crying for just a while she knew that they had to burry him, which meant Naruto had to let go. Rubbing her eyes she tried to walk through the mud towards him, her wounds healed._

_  
She sat down beside him and covered her mouth once more as tears welled up.  
"We…we have to bury him…" she said brokenly._

_  
He didn't answer. _


	2. Book 1 Chapter 2

Shizune entered the office and to her surprise, saw Sakura staring at a picture frame in her hands, her front facing towards the window and her back towards the door. It seemed like the picture Rokudaime often stared at too.

Sakura didn't move when she heard the door click open.

Shizune closed it and moved towards the piles of paper and noted that Sakura was dressed for battle. She turned her head towards the pile again; Naruto had ordered her to place the information about Obito there.

"Where is Naruto?"

Shizune turned. Sakura still stared at the picture, tall and proud.

"He is at the temple in the mountains, praying to the former Hokages for success…"

The pink haired woman frowned. "Why should he do that? It won't help him anyway, we shinobi rely on skill and teamwork…"

The older black haired woman stared at her sadly. "You shouldn't think like that Sakura-san…"

She placed the frame on the table again. "He has always been easy to manipulate, Naruto that is. If you want to, you can make him believe anything…"

Shizune frowned. "There is a reason he is the Rokudaime Sakura-san, do not underestimate him…six years has passed since you left…don't expect him to not having developed…"

Sakura looked down.

"I think I stood still in those years…I disappointed Rin-san when I refused sharing anything of my knowledge…because what she knew, I hardly knew myself…"

With a groan she slammed her hand into the table. "I am weak! Weak!"

-

"One for the first Hokage…"

He lit the first candle.

"The second…"

He lit the second candle.

"My mom, my dad, my granddad, my dead family…whom ever they were…"

Five candles were lit.

"Sarutobi…Haku…Zabuza…"

Three more.

"…Dan, and Tsunade-no-baa-chan's brother…"

Two for the sake of his replacement-mother's wishes.

"………..Sasuke's mom, dad…and for the salvation of his brother some day…"

Three candles.

"…Sasuke…"

That one was lit with a heavy hand.

He heard the door slide open and close again. He closed his eyes when he lit the last candle. "And Tsunade-"

"Naruto…"

He turned his head slowly, the usual grin replaced with a sad smile. "Hey Shikamaru…"

The shadow ninja crossed his arms. "I am leaving now…anything you want me to do while I am gone…"

It took him a while to answer.

"No…just go…"

Shikamaru nodded and took his own stick and lit the edge. "It is sad, you know. All these people dying for the sake of others…I can remember Kurenai's face when Asuma was on the edge of dying. Things changes when you are close to dying and all you want to see is the life…"

He turned his face to Naruto. "I thought you would be happy again when Sakura came back Naruto…"

He snorted. "It is not that I am not glad for her presence…it is just…" he paused for a second and sighed. "Things changes as you say…I can't just go up to her and pretend like nothing happened…it would be wrong…Sakura isn't Sakura anymore…"

"I think Jiraiya said that once too, about Tsunade…"

Naruto looked up. "He did?"

Shikamaru nodded. "Yeah…said he loved her or something, but when he met her again she had changed…guess it is sorta ironic the way things turned out…"

Sasuke's candle blew out and Naruto closed his eyes. "Maybe…maybe we are just…I just…wanted Sakura and Sasuke to be there, here, right now…we should fight side by side…nothing should have turned out the way it should…-"

"- I didn't want to become Hokage like this…"

-

"Be careful Temari, don't rush anything…and remember to breastfeed the baby once every second hour, he is awfully thin…"

Temari stood and frowned for a while, not all that pleased that she was forced to 'heal' and stay away from battle. Readjusting the bundle in her arms she looked at the pink-haired kunoichi.

"Take care, Sakura-san," she said with a smirk.

Sakura didn't smile and stared at the baby boy; Temari noticed and looked at her son kindly. "Strange you know, I thought I was going to have children with a handsome man who knew many cool techniques and was stronger than me…" she laughed hard. "And here I am, far away from family and with a boy who only knows how to control his shadow…"

The baby sniffled a bit and Temari looked at bit puzzled. "What about you?"

Sakura looked confused at her. "What about me?"

The blond-haired women smirked. "Going to have small pink-haired babies some day? Heh?"

Strangely Sakura flushed and scratched her neck. "Well…uhm…"

Temari smirked and petted Sakura's shoulder hard. "Haha! What about Naruto? Rokudaime's strong kids? Heh heh?"

Sakura narrowed her eyes. "Temari-san, Naruto and I are not going to have babies…"

Temari stuck out her tongue and waved. "Sure thing Sakura-san…but remember, I have taken Shikamaru, take him away and I'll kill you…"

Sakura raised an eyebrow.

Temari blinked. "Go get the Hokage, girl…"

Sakura groaned.

-

Naruto and Shikamaru walked through the streets of Konoha, admiring the buildings before the attack, who knew what the city would look like when they were done? Well, they counted on that most of the ninjas would only reach the borders of the forest, so that the village was relatively safe.

He then noted that the Hyuugas stood in his way, blocking his small trip. Neji spoke. "Rokudaime-sama…"

Naruto grinned. "Yo…!"

Hinata hid behind her cousin and a blush was clear in her face. Naruto didn't notice her at all. "What's up Neji?"

"Hinata would like to be in the Hokage group in the assault…"

Naruto tilted his head to one side and smiled. "Sure, that won't be a problem Hinata! We could use the Byakugan…"

Neji nodded, and Naruto scratched his head while laughing.

"By the way…Rokudaime-sama…" he continued. Naruto listened. "I will take my time to congratulate you and thank you for the kindness…"

Neji sat down on the ground and bowed, his forehead touching his ground. "You kept your promise…you are a worthy Hokage…"

Naruto laughed even harder. "You are welcome! But my name is Uzumaki Naruto! Right Hinata?"

"A…ah…yes…"

Neji stared at him for a while before smiling, and Naruto ran over to Hinata and placed his arm around her. "Be a bit like Hinata, right Neji?"

"You truly are a different Hokage…" Shikamaru complained.

The street was filled with laughter and then screams when Hinata fainted.

Sakura stood stiff in the darkness of an alley, surprised. "Did Neji say what I think he said…?" she softly whispered to herself. Her brows went into a frown. 'I won't believe until I see…'

-

Naruto stared at her in shock. "W…what?"

"I said I wanted to stay in the main field, not amongst those who stay back…"

"Sakura…"

"No! Listen! I will not be weak as you think I am! I am strong! I can fig…"

He slammed his fist into his table, his patient long gone. Not that she had done it, he had just dealt with a lot of people…and now _she_ was going against him.

"I don't care, Sakura! I know you are strong!" His face full of anger as he slammed his fist into the table one more time. "You can kill me with one stroke!"

"Then, why won't you let me fight!" she screamed back, waving her hands furiously in the air.

"Because I don't want you to get hurt!"

She threw her assistance paper on the desk, her emotions just as his. "So what? How can I help anyone that way! You know who I am! Stop holding me back!"

He hissed. "I am not Sasuke, Sakura! I trust you! You are strong, I believe in you! "

She stopped and stared at him, her eyes narrowing. "Don't talk about Sasuke in that way…"

"Why? You are not the one who killed him, Sakura!" He never imagined in his whole life that he would say such cruel things to her.

"How can you just expect me to treat you how you want me to? This is a community! If you go against it, it might be fatal…" he continued.

She slapped him…she really did, and he let her. "Don't! Don't talk like you are the leader, the ruler of me! I am my own!" she did it once more. "I can't stay here if you don't let me…"

He sat down and buried his head in his hands. "…Sakura I am sorry…"

She wrinkled her nose and hurried out the door, slamming it with all her force making the Hokage-building shake.

Naruto stared at the inner of his hands, wondering how things turned out like this. When he had become so cruel and she so naïve…

…And when did Sasuke become the one thing they couldn't talk about.

-

Hinata, Ino, Lee, Naruto, Genma and Chouji stood in a line, far back in the real assault. Naruto had a great view over all the Ninjas, and he was placed high up, hidden in the trees, which only his people could see.

The Rock army slowly advanced and Naruto narrowed his eyes. The original numbers had been decreased a lot, but it would still be a memorably fight. Sakura was nowhere to be seen and it worried him. Their small outburst had made Shizune almost tear out her hair when she entered the room.

Naruto then shot his hand down. "YOSH! DO YOUR BEST! OFF!"

The ninja's saluted and sprang through the forest, making the surrounding trees nearly lose all their leaves.

Lee jumped towards Neji and Chouji to Ino, everyone ready for the big battle. Hinata tried her best not to blush at the sight of Naruto standing proud in the dim light from the sunset. She drew one big breath. "Sha…shall we go Naruto-kun…"

He turned his head towards her and smiled. "Sure thing, Hinata!"

Drawing a bit of his blood, he slammed his hand to the ground, summoning the great frog king.

"_What Naruto? Summoning me here of all places?"_

Hinata stared dumbfounded at the huge frog beneath her. "Aih!"

Naruto smiled dumbly and scratched his nose. "Nothing! We just have to play a little…"

The King blew out a cloud of smoke and smirked. "_Well! Why didn't you say that the first time?"_

With a shriek, Hinata watched as both she and Naruto flew into the air, the frog underneath them.

-

Temari turned wide-eyed when a huge blast could be heard all the way to where they were. Shikamaru stared too and narrowed his eyes. "We have to get you away quickly…" and began to walk faster towards the mist-country.

His hand went to hers but found nothing but air. Temari was walking the opposite way. He groaned and took her roughly at the arm.

"Don't! We have to get you to safety!"

She narrowed her eyes at him. "I don't care! I have to help th-"

"Temari! You are going to die! You are not in a condition to be there!"

She glared at him. "Shikamaru…you only came here so you wouldn't have to fight…you cry baby…"

He grabbed her arm harder making her wince a bit. "Don't ever…ever…say that I am here willingly…"

"THEN, GO BACK AND FIGHT!"

"NO!"

"Why NOT?"

"BECAUSE I NEED YOU TO BE SAFE!"

"BECAUSE NARUTO TOLD YOU!"

He shook her. "NO! Because I care about you!" Shikamaru let go of her arm and marched off towards the bridge. "Troublesome woman…"

She glared at him and followed him for an unknown reason. Something told her that what he said was true, but never underestimate the pride of a sand woman…that was what Kankarou said a lot of times.

-

Naruto clapped the frog king on his head. "GIVE ME SOME OIL!"

"_YOSH!_" It roared, drawing in its breath while Naruto made the hand seals.

The enemy ninjas looked terrified and quickly began to retreat, but Naruto only smirked. "KATON!"

Hinata stood amazed as the giant frog spit out oil and was burned by Naruto's fire-technique.

When the fire disappeared Naruto stood for a while and inspected the area. When seeing no one had survived, he saluted. "YATTA!"

The frog king laughed. "_Truly if I hadn't seen that, I would never have believed it…or that you have become Hokage…"_

"HEY!" that was when he turned around and saw the Tsuchikage before him. "Shit!"

-

"Sakura-san!" Shizune yelled across the battlefield, making Sakura turn her head swiftly.

"Naruto! He is hurt! I need your help!"

Sakura's eyes widened and she jumped down from the branch, avoided getting hit by the many kunais. _'Damnit Naruto! What have you done now…?'_

-

The petals swirled downwards as Sakura stood before Naruto's damaged body. Her mouth slightly parted and her green eyes wide.

"_SASUKE! I HAVE TO HEAL HIM…!"_

_She collapsed to the ground, the sword still firm within her stomach. Her breath harsh due to the fact that she had almost been killed. Naruto stood still, his eyes wide as he gazed at the silent Sasuke before him._

_He had chosen to save Sakura by slamming his Rasengan with his wind-nature and give Sasuke a giant fatal wound…for the sake of Sakura._

_Sakura knew she could save him; she just needed to get this sword out. _

"_SASUKE!"_

Shizune hovered over Hinata's body, healing her as much as she could. Beside her lay the groaning body of the Tsuchikage. Sakura gasped shortly and ran to him, enemy or not, he needed treatment; it was normal for a medic to think that way. The urge to heal their surroundings.

"Don't die!" she screamed and let her hands hover above his chest where the wound of the Rasengan lay.

-

_Her hands hovered above his chest, the Rasengan ran deep and his breath was racked, he didn't have much time. Placing them firmly she let her chakra run through her veins, healing the best she could. However, no green light came and she grew frightened and began panicking, screaming louder and louder for every passing second, seeing Sasuke's face grow completely white._

"_Itachi…" his mouth escaped, and she screamed louder slamming her hands into the ground. _

"_WHY?"_

"_Sasuke! Wake up!" she tried her hardest and traced the wound which had stopped bleeding, but from other reasons. The small green lights that came from her fingertips were too late._

_Slamming her fist once more into the ground. "Why?"_

_Her head turned angrily towards Naruto, who stood completely still, "Why, Naruto? Why?"_

_-_

She pushed the memory away and began to heal the wound, which closed surprisingly fast, making her wonder what had gotten into her. Brown eyes, which were a common feature amongst rock, opened and the lashes fluttered due to the sudden light. The Kage was young, but old, she estimated him to be older than both her and Naruto, but only by a few years.

When the Kage finally focused his gaze on her he laughed.

"Geez…I must have really died…"

She sighed in relief and stood up moved over to Naruto. He was muddy, bloody and didn't look well at all, if that even described the situation good enough. She sat down to prepare the healing; rubbing her sore hands she let them hover above his chest…but no green light

-

_No green light came._

_-_

Her eyes widened. "No…" she tried again, pushing herself harder; she wasn't Tsunade's apprentice for nothing.

-

_He turned paler._

_-_

"Naruto!" she screamed, her eyes showing her frustration, knowing that even the Kyuubi couldn't help now. "Naruto!"

-

"_Itachi…"_

_-_

She froze and stared at the whiskers on his face, his eyes closed and his breath swallow, but she couldn't…she couldn't get her chakra to work.

-

"_You have perfect chakra control…Sakura…"_

_-_

Shizune noticed Sakura's frustration, but she had to save Hinata. "Sakura! Get a grip! He is dying…"

However, Sakura didn't seem to hear it. "Sasuke-kun…" with a breath she closed her eyes and began to cry. How many years had it been since she cried the last time? The strange yet familiar sensation of the wetness against her cheeks, which only hold bad memories for her.

She dried her eyes, but the tears continued. Naruto had never made her cry, not on purpose, if anybody ever did make one cry on purpose. It was a silent cry, not a sob; it was those times where your mouth went into a deep frown and the tears just trailed down. She gasped for her breath as it slowly grew into sobs and her hands continued hovering just above his chest.

Closing her fist and opening them again she tried to calm herself down, but all her emotions came back to her with a swift motion and she couldn't control them.

"Sasuke-kun---,"she whispered. A soft hand was placed on her shoulder and she gasped. She could hear a deep chuckle and almost sense the smirk. _"Yo, Sakura…how about stop being weak and save Naruto over there…"_

The tears came back to her as she moved her hands closer to the wound. _"…Stop being so annoying."_

"Sasuke-kun…"

A low grunt was heard. Her fingers traced his stomach and her mouth parted a bit open, the chakra slowing forming, but she knew that it wasn't enough to heal.

"_Eh? Sakura? What are you doing? This isn't what I taught you, was it? Geez! Have you been slacking off in the time you were away…?"_

Her eyes opened and gasped. "Tsunade-sama!"

There was no one but she felt her teacher's presence behind her, Tsunade's hands that were placed on top of hers. Of course when she looked there was nothing, but the warmth and the presence was too strong to be ignored.

Smiling sadly she closed her eyes again, noticing that the chakra streamed freely now, and the healing sensation from her fingers being transferred to Naruto. "You better live, Naruto…"

Tsunade smiled, she knew she did. _"You are not my apprentice for nothing Sakura…"_

Minutes passed by and she noted that Naruto began to breathe normally again and she couldn't help the already streaming tears to become more intense.

-

_She watched his body grow white and she knew it was too late; there was nothing she could do. It was her fault…she was useless as a medic, and she was weak._

_Standing up she just stood, watching as Naruto circled his arms around Sasuke's body…she was the failure._

_-_

"Sakura…chan…"

Her eyes opened with a jolt and widened when they saw an exhausted Naruto lay before her, smiling, not grinning, smiling.

She bit her lip, the tears still streaming down her face like a waterfall, landing softly in a puddle at his chest. "Naruto…"

Before Naruto knew what had hit him she threw herself over him, hugging him with all her force, afraid that he might disappear. "You stupid baka! Baka! Baka!" He was confused at first, but realized slowly that Sakura, still was Sakura.

"Hey! I am not a baka! I am the Hokage! H-O-K-A-G-E!"

She sat up, crossing her arms. "Well! You aren't a good one! Going off, nearly getting killed!"

-

_Thank you Sasuke…Tsunade-sama._

_-_

He stared at her and sighed. "Sakura-chan you are so strict" and pouted.

"N…Naruto-kun…" their gazes turned to a bruised Shizune carrying a nearly healed Hinata.

Naruto then sat up as if he hadn't been hurt in the first place. "Are you okay Hinata? He didn't hurt you, did he? Did he?"

A small blush traveled across the girl's cheeks, as she looked the other way. "No…no, not that badly…"

Sakura decided to let the lovebirds be, and turned her eyes towards the Tsuchikage who sat on the other side, watching Naruto, Hinata, Shizune and Sakura. When his eyes saw her staring at him he smiled, showing his gratitude.

"Hey…it's quite…" Naruto noted. Shizune looked up in the sky. "I think it is over…one battle…and it's over…"

Sakura stood up and Naruto stared at her confused. With soft footsteps she walked over to the Tsuchikage and showed him her hand, motioning him to take it. Grateful as the kage was, he took it and helped him stand up.

He was sore and needed to stay in the hospital for a few days, but he could walk.

"Naruto…"

He looked at her.

"I demand that since the battle is over that Konoha ninjas treat both rock and leaf ninjas…!"

Naruto gazed at her for a while before grinning. "Of course!"

The kage looked at her, but she didn't look back. She looked serious, professional, and the only thing that might seem like weakness was the trails of dried tears.

The Rokudaime stood up fully and turned to watch the leaf monuments. Sakura smiled.

-

_Maybe…just maybe he has overcome every Hokage._

_-_

_Tsunade-sama…_lifting her gaze to the sky she closed her eyes. _Maybe, just maybe I can become an even greater medic…_


	3. Book 1 Chapter 3

"eat up Naruto…" she commanded, showing the spoon into his face. Naruto glared and crossed his arms, refusing to swallow the 'infected' food. Sakura sighed.

"Naruto, I know you are the Hokage, but stop acting like a child and eat…"

His gaze rested on her hands. Scars that have been made recently and years back, with a soft swift of his hand his traced the biggest one, making her twitch in surprise.

"Naruto!"

He looked up and grinned, making her want to strangle him. "What is your problem? I am trying to help you here…"

He turned his face in disgust. "Not with that stuff in your hands…"

She sighed again and slammed the pottery back on the table. "What the hell is your problem, I am trying to help you…" she said, more like a statement than a question.

Naruto turned his face back to her, watching as she brushed her pink hair behind her ear. His eyebrows moving downwards, Sakura looked up and tilted her head to the side. "Something wrong?"

"Sakura…why did you save the tsuhikage…"

Her eyes widened a bit before she scratched her neck. "Well…uhm…because…" she noticed the confusion in his eyes and sighed.

"The thing is…" her hands went to her lap. "While I saw you lying there…I suddenly remembered everything we went through, and…I remembered…"

As if the theme was something completely common to talk about she picked up an apple from her bag.

"I remembered how we used to be together, team seven…" a pause. "How foolish we really were…"

She picked up the knife from the table and began to cut the apple.

"I think…I sorta needed to make him live…I needed to be responsible for a foreign life so I wouldn't depend on you so much…that you were alive…" she smiled, "I guess it was my medic feelings…the urge to make people live…"

She lowered the knife and Naruto followed it with his eyes. "Maybe because I felt guilty…like he was the same as everyone else, he has someone who loves him, cares for him. I think…I saw Sasuke-kun in him…despite how cold, evil and harmful he can be to others we still cared for him…"

-

"_I love you Sasuke-kun! I love you so much!"_

_-_

Her eyes rested at the sharp edge of the knife.

"I think…I pitied him…I don't want to be responsible for his death, knowing that if I chose to let him die someone will hate me…"

-

"_How can I smile again…knowing that it was my fault that he died…?"_

-

"However…you…I…"

"Naruto-kun…" a shaky voice spoke from the doorway, causing both of them to turn their head. Hinata whose head was bandaged, and had a large bruise on her left arm stood there twitching nervously. Sakura noted the look she gave Naruto and sighed, knowing that she would only be in the way right now.

"See you later Naruto…" she said and placed the apple on the table.

_-_

_The apples flew through the air as Sasuke rejected her simple gesture of affection. Both she and Naruto stood paralyzed, watching the Uchiha heir glare at his blonde companion, Sakura forgotten._

_Always forgotten._

_-_

"Ah, Sakura-san…" an older voice spoke from behind, making her turn surprised. "Rin-san? What can I help you with…?" Rin smiled and handed her a medic list with names, most of them having a mark.

"I have to go Sakura-san, Kakashi-san asked me to join him at Obito's grave…" Sakura noted the sad expression when Rin said Obito's name.

Sakura took the list and smiled. "Of course Rin-san, I will take over; I just finished my own list…"

Rin stared at her for a while before smiling. "Sakura-san…you seem happy…"

"I do?" she muttered puzzled with a hint of surprise.

"Yes…maybe it was good for you returning to Konoha, meeting with your old bonds, old friends…"

Sakura pouted and placed her hands on her hips. "I haven't seen anyone except Naruto and Kakashi lately, not even Ino."

Rin chuckled, something that was foreign for Sakura. "Well, you do seem pretty close to the Hokage…" she blinked with her eye, motioning the pink haired girl to follow her thoughts.

-

"_It sure is nice of you to treat your girlfriend Naruto-kun!" the Ramen owner winked._

_-_

"No! Rin-san! Geez…I thought you knew me better than that…" Sakura exclaimed, clearly in shock that the elder woman even suggested such a thing.

Rin continued smiling. "I think he is a nice boy, and you are a nice girl…maybe you should look at him in another way perhaps…"

Sakura glared, "we will not continue this conversation Rin-san" she turned around on her heals and marched off into the other directions, leaving a smiling Rin behind.

-

"Ano…Naruto-kun…thank you for rescuing me back then I really appreciate it…" Hinata began to fumble with her fingers and couldn't look at him for one second.

Naruto grinned. "Hey! I am not the Hokage for nothing you know"

Hinata smiled, still not looking at him. "I know…Naruto-kun, and…and you are great at it…"

"Ahahahahaha!" he laughed, his cheeks red from the sweet comment. "Of course I am!"

Hinata stopped fumbling with her fingers and moved to her pants. Naruto looked up again. "Oh! Hey Hinata! How about we go out and eat once I am out of this dreaded room…"

The white-eyed Hyuga girl stared at him surprised before she fell backwards with a loud thump.

"Hinata!"

-

"_Hm…it's Sakura…"_

_Like slow-motion she felt herself turn her head abnormally slow, teasing her eyes was the grim picture of her former friend. Her eyes wide as realisation hit her senses. _

"_Sasuke…"_

_There was no way; it couldn't be the boy standing on the cliff, looking down at her._

"…_-kun…"_

_-_

Naruto got curios when someone knocked on the door again. "Who dares to disturb the Hokage!" he grinned. With a soft creek it opened, causing Naruto's eyes to widen.

"Ero-sennin?"

"Yo Naruto…geez what has happened to you huh? Girl-fight…"

"…………………Ero-sennin you pervert…"

-

"Don't worry, just rest a couple of days and you'll be ready for trial." Sakura said uninterested in the Kage before her. He smiled.

"You are a nice medic, but I never really caught your name…"

She looked at him sternly. "Haruno Sakura…"

He continued to smile. "That's a pretty name…" she glared. "Still don't trust me Sakura-sama…"

She pushed him down in the bed and checked his fever. "I have a reason not too, you almost killed my best friend and his friend…all of Konoha for that sake, my family…I have no reason to like you either…"

His smile was replaced with a frown. "And I could say the same thing to you Sakura-sama…"

"You could, but it was you who chose to attack…you knew the consequences…" she turned her head and tilted it to the left, forcing a smile on her face. "That is why I treat you like you do…you might have precious persons to you, but I will not let you take mine away…"

"I see that your fake smile hasn't changed…"

Sakura turned her face around and so did the Kage, wondering who spoke to her in such a rude manner. Her eyes widened in a happy surprise. "Sai!"

As he always did he smiled kindly and Sakura had learned a long time ago how to see through his real and fake smiles. This was a grateful one.

"I heard you came back and I thought that I should kindly visit my old team-mate as a friendly gesture…"

She placed her hands on her hips. "Geez…you are even worse than Naruto..."

Sai stood emotionless but she noticed that his left eye twitched a bit. "I would prefer that you didn't refer me to that dope with a Pen-"

A hand quickly covered his mouth as she whispered dangerously. "You listen to me…there is a Kage in this room…so "

"behave…"

He was quiet for a while before nodding, knowing when to stop with this girl, unless he wanted a broken cheekbone. No, Sai had never enjoyed it.

The Kage seemed amused by the situation. He chuckled inwards; maybe this was how the Konoha ninjas behaved around each other, the women bossy and the men weak. This made him wonder how the Hokage had managed to defeat him at all.

-

"_I won't let you destroy my dream!" the blond-haired boy screamed as he assembled the rasengan in his hand. "I won't let you kill my precious people…" cracking his knuckles before he flew towards the petrified TsuchiKage. _

"_I have lost one too much!"_

_The pain hit him and the strange twirling sensation in his stomach was anything but soothing. "Because you didn't kill your best friend…!" Naruto slammed his fist into his face._

"_Because you didn't make your best female friend go away! Loosing her too!" tears streamed down Naruto's face as he hit him again._

"_Because you weren't alone! You probably had people with you all the way…!"_

_The rock ninjas eyes widened as they saw their Kage fly to the ground._

"_Because I love those I have more than anything! Because I lost what I treasured the most!"_

_-_

He frowned, and wondered who his female friend might be.

What had made the kid so strong?

-

Sakura was out of the hospital late at night, finally ending her work with the patient. Who knew that they could be so demanding at times?

Stepping with tired steps into the lobby she noticed a blond woman sit with a wailing baby in her arms. "Temari?"

The woman looked up, revealing the trademark of many sand-nins, green eyes. They showed her pride and her obvious self-esteem, she was a strong woman. Sakura smiled. "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in the mist?"

"…" No answer.

"Temari?" her hand softly reached out to touch her shoulder but the figure disappeared along side with the room. Terrified by the sudden change she stepped backwards only to meet the solid body of another person.

"Hm…its Sakura…" eyes wide she jumped forward and turned around. The onyx eyes that had haunted her for years stood before her, cold as they had always been, terrifying as she remembered them.

"B…bu…you're dead!"

She flinched. "Sasuke….kun…" He stared at her emotionless, as if he was in deep thought. Her brain taking over, she pinched her arm, trying to see if she felt any pain.

With a hiss she released her flesh, cursing, she was under a genjutsu. The question was when and how…?

As she felt backwards she realised that this weren't a genjutsu.

-

"_Tsunade-sama!..."_

_It was dark, even when the lights were on Sakura thought it was too dark. "Tsunade-sama…"_

_Sakura wasn't afraid of the dark, more like frogs, snakes and that bastard Orochimaru. Narrowing her eyes further she stomped through the hallway in search for her master. _

_Tsunade-sama had offered her to stay over night so that they could continue her special training before dawn. It didn't affect Sakura as much as it should, maybe because she had spend many other nights in the Hokage tower, so she knew her way around._

"_Tsunade-sama…"_

_However, she couldn't find her teacher anywhere. Crossing a corner and a turn to the left she entered the guest chambers. Tsunade didn't keep many of them, mostly Kage's if they came or royalties, sometimes if a friend from the past came by._

_Mostly it was just her and Shizune who slept there, sometimes she though she could here Tsunade talk to someone there. It was mostly hissing, like an argument, but she held a different tone, a caring touch._

_Sakura was growing impatient and thought that she might as well get some sleep. Walking down the little staircase of only five steps she noticed the light in the room on the corner. Curiosity getting the better of her she used her shinobi skills and sneaked along with the wall._

"_Tsunade-hime…what are you doing? I am trying to sleep…" a tired voice spoke. The rustle of clothes told her that her teacher crossed her arms offended as she so often did. Sakura rolled her eyes. Some things just never changes._

"_Jirayia I would suggest that you behave…"_

"_What for? You slam me into the wall anyway…"_

"…_aren't you supposed to be training with Naruto? Where is he! You know that Akatsuki are searching for him!"_

_The rustle of the sheets brought her attention. "Tsunade…you are too concerned…stop spoiling the kid…"_

_The shouji door fell victim to Tsunade's anger, but Jirayia seemed unaffected. _

"_I would like to sleep Tsunade; Naruto awaits me in the morning…"_

_She was angry, and the Hokage quickly stomped off, leaving a puzzled Jirayia behind. Was she PMS'ing?_

_-_

Sakura opened her eyes and found herself lying in her bed in the Hokage tower. Trying to control her breath she covered her eyes with her right arm. Unexplainable tears made their way down her cheek. "Tsunade-sama…"

-

"_You are not my apprentice for nothing Sakura…"_

_-_

Naruto stretched his toes out, bending them, causing them to crack. Sighing in satisfaction he felt the need to get ready to meet Hinata, it wasn't a fancy dinner, just a friendly chat.

Grinning he stretched his arms upward; he had the feeling that today was a good day.

His door clicked open and revealed his pink-haired partner. "Yo! Sakura…"

"..."

He raised an eyebrow at her missing answer, usually it would be 'baka' or 'baka Naruto', but there was nothing. She had bangs underneath her eyes and she looked like she had been crying. Naruto got concerned. "Sak..."

Before he could say anything else her hand covered his mouth. "Don't…I am fine…go eat with Hinata…" she released his mouth.

"H…Hinata! You knew about that…?"

She glared at him. "Naruto I am not stupid…why would you dress like that if it wasn't for the fact that you were going on a date, and the only girl I could imagine you ask at the moment is Hinata…so off you go…"

Naruto came to the conclusion that Sakura was scary when she was in a bad mood. Strangely it seemed like a deja-vu of their past, but without a Sasuke in it. With a stiff face he placed his hand on her shoulder. "Sakura…what is wrong…"

She stopped, and looked into the wood of the desk, closing her eyes. "Not now Naruto…you have a da-"

He tightened his hold on her. "No! You are the person I care about most in this world! You know me for who I am Sakura…and I know you…I try to…and I don't like you hiding things for me…"

She sighed. "Not now Naru…"

"Sakura! Don't do this to me…please…"

A small splat was heard when a small drop of water hid the hard surface of the desk. Sakura had already covered her eyes with her right hand, causing Naruto to worry even more. "Naruto…" she hiccupped.

If he wasn't so worried about her he would have smiled, knowing that what he saw now was the Sakura he had always known. However, when she turned, her eyes wore a pleading look, he felt his heart leap.

"Naruto…"

she broke down right then and there. Her eyes full of tears that seemed to have no end, her face covered by her hands as if shielding herself from the world. Naruto was frightened and against all of his logic he did something he had never done before.

He hugged her.

-

Temari awoke lazily and turned in the bed. It was a small house in a poor envirement, and according to Shikamaru they were pretty rich. Groaning she buried her head into the soft texture of the pillow, sighing comfortably.

"Temari-san…I think your husband wants to speak with you…" Temari opened one eye and watched the owner of the house stand politely in the doorway. "I don't have husband…" she muttered.

Tsunami frowned. "I know that you had a fight with him not so long ago, but thinking of a divorce so early is-"

"We are not married…"

The older dark-haired woman stared at her surprised and then at the baby. If she knew the Suna well enough it was a taboo having a child outside marriage…

"But…"

"Don't worry….when I recover I'll go home and leave the boy alone, let him find a wife, and get his own children…"

Tsunami didn't like her way of thought and sat beside her, Temari's child secure in her arms. "Well…don't you want to stay with him…?"

"I am a sand, I have higher priorities, things like that comes second…" she stared at the flowery pattern on her pillow. "We are from two different countries…we are split between ourselves…" the darkness from her eyes felt comfortable to her. "We are not children anymore…he knows that…sacrifices needs to be made…"

-

_Don't underestimate the pride of a sand woman, when she is hurt she will do everything to abandon you, and she will do it in the cruelest way, and the most hurtful way. If she leaves you kindly, without any misery it is worse than the latter. Because then you can be sure you'll never see her again._

_-_

The Hyuuga resident was big, but not as big as the Hokage resident. Naruto grinned big, it was dark but the moon shone brightly. Hinata fumbled with her fingers beside him, wondering what to say, the embarrassing silence continued.

"So well…" he started. "We are here…thanks for the dinner Hinata!" he grinned. The black-haired girl blushed a bit crimson, turning her head away. "Y…you are welcome Naruto-kun…"

"You fine on your own now? Because my desk must be flooding with papers right now…" he frowned when thinking about how much Sakura would scold him when he got back. Hinata noticed and quickly bid him farewell, which he grinned at and waved, watching her walk her way back into the Hyuuga resident, a small blush visible on her face.

-

Sakura sat silently on the ground, her knees folded and her hand touching the name of the tombstone. "I can't believe Tsunade let you burry this far away…"

She closed her eyes and rested her head on the cool surface. "I don't understand, years pass by and the pain seems to increase so much…" her hand touched the spot above her heart, wondering why her heart suddenly ached.

"Oh Sasuke-kun…"

"We loved you so much…I ne…never wanted it to become like this…"

She sat still for a while, drying her eyes, even though she weren't crying. When she stopped she stared at the name, whishing that she had seen the person alive beside her, cold glare or not, he would still be there. Maybe, just maybe he would love her.

She placed her head on her knees and closed her eyes.

She just wanted to see him, she just wanted Sasuke to know how much…

...just how much she loved him, with all her heart, she never wanted to kill him, never wanted to be responsible. All she wanted to was to teach him how to love, and maybe love her back…with Naruto by their side.

"Sakura-chan?"

She didn't look up.

The sound of footsteps hurrying across the stones should be comforting, but Sakura wanted to be alone.

A hand on her shoulder made her tense. "Sakura-chan…w…what are you doing out here?"

"…"

"Sakura!"

"Leave me alone!" she screamed and buried her head further into her knees. Naruto looked sad, rejected somehow. "Sakura-chan…"

"Goddamnit Naruto! I don't need you to comfort me! I am fine…"

He sighed…and sat down beside her.

They sat like that for a long time before Sakura finally turned her gaze upwards and met his.

For some unfamiliar reason his cheeks suddenly flushed and she narrowed her eyes. "Why are you doing this Naruto…?"

"Eh?"

She turned her gaze towards the grave. "Always helping people…wanting them to try their best, and they do…you make them trust you with their life…and even let you decide whether or not they should live…" his blush disappeared and she let him touch her back again.

"I don't know Sakura…I just think…" he met her gaze.

"I don't think I can watch you die…I just…" his hand wandered unconsciously to her hands and he took it in his own.

Naruto knew she needed comfort, but he was surprised the she let him touch him.

"I don't want to be alone Sakura-chan…"

Her eyes were normal as she gazed back at him. He grinned awkwardly, trying to lighten the atmosphere. "…and you shouldn't be alone too…"

When her face came nearer his, his eyes widened in surprise and nervousness. His cheeks were a bright red colour and so were hers, maybe a bit lighter perhaps, but it was visible.

It was a strange situation; here they sat, beside a tomb of their old best friend. A companion they had killed unwillingly. So close to each other, and if Naruto had to be honest he had never in his life been so close to a girl, and never one he had loved as much as her.

"Naruto…" she whispered and closed her eyes, her lips and inch from his.

Naruto felt all of sudden that he couldn't breathe, there was no way he could do this, it would destroy everything! Their friendship! They were just companions; they hadn't had contact for six years!

Yet his mouth moved by a force he couldn't help, she was afterall…

"Sakura-chan…"

They sat like that for a while, an inch from each other, Naruto's hand in her right, and her left hand on his shoulder, her own head titling a bit to the right. She wanted to kiss him; no doubt about that.

She might have some sort of feelings for him, but Sakura was not that kind of person to start a relationship on such weak kind of emotions. So why was she about to kiss him?

She opened her eyes and saw the nervous yet exited look on his face, his eyes closed.

She closed her own and whispered. "Don't…just forget what happened here tonight okay…"

Naruto relaxed a bit and sighed. "Yes…"

Then she kissed him. A light cherry kiss on his unexpected lips and he tensed immediately, his heart racing, just like when he was twelve, but something prevented him from enjoying it…

…to be honest, Naruto thought it was wrong, so he pushed her away.

"Sakura-chan…I…I just can't…it feels wrong…"

Sakura had an expressionless face when he said those words, as if she wasn't listening, Naruto frowned and stood up, making sure that she followed him. She brushed a hand across her lips, which Naruto didn't see.

Turning his head back to her he dragged her with him. He had taken the job of walking both of them home to the Hokage-tower. Because something went completely wrong that day…

-

"_Sasuke-kun"_

_-_

_Edited first time._

A/N: don't worry! Arrgh! I know I made them OOC, and you can flame me for it.  
1: you said it was NaruSaku!

It is! However, I need to show the progress, even though it was a bad NaruSaku moment, and don't expect anything until 2 chapters ahead. This is a NaruSaku with a few other pairings.

2: What is wrong with Temari?

Nothing, she is just Temari, might be clingy but she isn't stupid, she knows Shikamaru, and it is obvious that the baby wasn't wanted, so she wants Shikamaru to continue his own life, with his own lazy dreams, because she has the ability to live on by herself.

3: I want NaruHina moments!

There will be a few…….but I am not worshipping the couple, so don't flame me about it.

4: What is wrong with Sakura?

What is wrong? Oh, where to start. How would you behave if you were responsible for your best friend dead?

Everything is copyrighted by Kishimoto.

Review or flame me if necessary.


	4. Book 1 Chapter 4

Naruto sat in the couch numb, his eyes wide and slowly his head fell in to his hands. To him everything was starting to crumble before him, none of what they said could be true; it was afterall Sakura they were talking about.

Groaning he spoke to himself in the quiet room. "Tsunade-no baa-chan…why did you have to go and die…."

-

Jirayia stood outside the meeting room of the Hokage, his arm crossed and his eyebrows curling into a deep frown. Shizune on the other side her gaze on the ground and a small medic book hanging lazily from her hands.

The atmosphere was anything from calm.

Jirayia spoke first. "He already knew…he told me everything, he knew what the consequences would be…"

Shizune bit down her lip.

"It makes me sad knowing that a fine and honest girl like Sakura has to suffer like that now…" Jirayia continued.

Shizune shifted slightly on her feet, the ground more interesting than the old man before her.

He just lifted his gaze to the door, hearing nothing but silence from the room. "Naruto has never been a great thinker, I wonder if he can do anything even if he did use his power…"

"Naruto-sama will have his position taken away if he uses his power to stop the trial…" Shizune spoke.

Jirayia couldn't help but chuckle a bit at the situation. "Well, Sakura reminds me a lot of Tsunade you know. No matter who they are, or what they have done, they always wanted to help…Now Sakura has to get punished for helping the Tsuchikage…"

Shizune slammed her foot into the ground in anger. "Damnit! I told her to rescue Naruto! If she just listened…"

"Sakura wouldn't! " Jirayia yelled, glaring at the younger woman. "Sakura would have been miserable if she didn't help him…! And she knew what would have happened…"

Shizune was quiet for a while, "to me it seems…that she wanted to be punished…"

Her gaze rested at the door. "I pity him…"

Jirayia went silent.

-

Hinata stared wide-eyed at Neiji. "A…are you serious…"

He folded his fingers and rested them at the table, watching as his cousin was slowly starting to have a nervous breakdown, which hadn't been his intention from the start. "Hinata-sama, I have no reason to lie to you…and you were there yourself…you know what Sakura-san has done…"

Hinata brought her hand to her mouth, closing her eyes. "W…what about Naruto-kun…it…she…she is his best friend…"

Neiji closed his own eyes and rested his forehead on his knuckles. "Let's hope her punishment is mild…I wouldn't want to see Naruto get thrown of the Hokage position so easily…"

-

Shikamaru stood in the doorway surprised, Naruto looking miserable as he rested his head on the desk. His hair messier than normal and bangs underneath his eyes. Shikamaru felt that he defiantly had a need to worry.

"Naruto…"

"…"

"Hey, yo, you okay?"

"…"

Shikamaru frowned. "Damnit! What has happened…?"

-

Temari sat outside the Hokage office in a soft chair, waiting for Shikamaru to get the latest news. The small child in her arms moved slowly and let out a small cry, causing her to loosen the blanket around him. Unconsciously a smile spread across her lips, making her calm down, it was a beautiful child. Black hair and eyes like the father, but what made her proud was that the skin was the same as the ones in the sand.

She stopped smiling and closed her eyes.

She would have to leave in a couple of days, when they sand ninjas were leaving the village, which meant that her brothers would have to know about her little 'incident'.

The thought itself made her cringe and wish she stayed with Tsunami and Irani. What in the world would Gaara say, or rather, what would he do?

She groaned and rested her head against the wall.

Soon after the door opened and a frustrated Shikamaru exited, she stared at him with her green eyes. "How did it go…?"

He sighed and stuck his hands into his pockets. "Bad…very bad…"

She frowned.

"It seems that Haruno Sakura has been sent to trial for treason to the Konoha village…they will arrest her at dawn."

Silence.

"Oh Shikamaru you have no humour at all! "She exclaimed and groaned, hoping that he really was joking. Her eyes rested on the plain roof. Was that a crack?

He sat down beside her and took out his hands from his pocket, placing them in front of him. Temari stared at the rough skin, wondering how a lazy ninja like him could get this kind of skin.

"Gaara says he will do everything he can to make sure Sakura escapes…"

Temari looked at him. "So…He wants to help Sakura to Suna?" the baby opened his eyes. "Shikamaru! Don't be joking!"

His eyes turned towards her. "I am not…" she sighed in relief. "Oh thank you…"

"Because if she stays here…she will be executed…"

She flinched.

Shikamaru reached out to touch his son, stroking his black hair with a sad smile.

Temari bit her lip. "How is Naruto taking this…?"

He looked up at her, but she didn't look back. Shikamaru sighed and continued to touch the black hair.

"Naruto…He…"

-

_She glared at him from her seat, her legs crossed as she snorted, "You never had emotional training?" speaking as if he was a strange thing._

_-_

"Haruno Sakura you are hereby arrested by the Rokudaime for treason against the Hidden village of Leaf, by saving the TsuchiKage during war. You have the right to remain silent; anything you say can be used against you…." The tall proud ninja said as he read the scroll out loud.

Beside him stood Ino and Shino, a look on their face showing inner torment.

They had probably protested loudly. Ino would at least.

Sakura sighed and opened the door fully. "I see…"

Shino took her by the arm, and Ino took the other, the other ninja eyeing Sakura with disgust. She didn't say anything.

They closed the door and let her down the alley, Sakura eyeing the Hokage tower in the distance. Letting her head drift to the floor she sighed.

-

"_Don't worry Naruto!" Sakura said grinning, amused by his bad table manners, "I will never betray you…!"_

_He looked up, ramen covering most of his face, his eyes as always confused. When he finally caught what she said he smiled brightly. "Of course you won't Sakura-chan!"_

_-_

Naruto came to the conclusion that he didn't like Sakura's apprentice, and for reasons know since the child, right now, stood in his office completely silent. And he thought that Yamato was creepy.

"Eh…uhm…what can I do for you…?"

"Tohru…"

"Eh?" he narrowed his eyes in confusion, and studied the girl further.

"Hanara Tohru is my name…"

He scratched the back of his neck, wondering how a ten year old girl could be so mature in one but more ways. It scared him.

"I am here to request a place as witness in the Haruno Sakura-case…"

His hand stopped and his eyes became pained, something the girl noted right away. She clutched the piece of paper roughly in her hands. Her brown hair hanging loosely down her shoulders, somehow her haircut reminded him of Tsunade, which didn't help anything at all.

"You are Naruto aren't you…?"

He looked up.

"She always talked a lot about you, telling me stories about how both of you rescued many ninjas. Your stupid perverted jutsus…"

She narrowed her eyes at him. "I don't understand why her eyes always lit up when she talked about you, she was usually gloomy all the time, and I don't know why you were so different…"

Naruto could feel a slight blush on his cheeks, and rubbed the whiskers.

"Heh…I can't believe a person like you is Hokage…"

Naruto's eyes widened, before he laughed. "Eheheheh! You defiantly are Sakura's apprentice! No doubt about that…"

The girl stopped her speech and stared at him confused. "Excuse me…"

"Hahahahah! That was the first thing Sakura-chan said to me when she saw me after six years…"

He slammed his hand into the desk as he tried to stop his uncontrollable laughter. "Ehehehehe"

"…" was Tohru's response.

"Ahahahahaha!" this was a strange feeling in his stomach, he really should be concerned about Sakura, but he just couldn't help it.

"However, I am here for answers…" she said.

"Ehehehe…" Naruto continued.

"I want to know who Uchiha Sasuke is…"

Naruto stopped right away, his eyes wide.

Tohru narrowed her eyes. "Because he is the reason my sensei is miserable…"

"…"

"I want to _kill_ him"

-

"Sakura!"

She could hear screaming outside her cell. Sakura rubbed her arms and closed her eyes, wishing that she was still travelling and not in the city of Konoha.

She wished that she had sent letters to Naruto.

She wished she had healed Sasuke that day…

"Sakura! Let me go! IT IS MY DAUGHTER!"

She folded her hands in her lap.

Wishing that Tsunade still was alive, and finally she wished that hadn't left in the first place.

"Sakura!"

Sakura then opened her eyes and turned her head backwards, making it rest against the wall, her green eyes sparkling in the evening sun.

"Sakuraaaaaa!"

The screams seemed so far away from her and everything she could see before her was a pair of onyx eyes staring coldly at her. Her lips curled into a smile as she shook her head, the image stayed.

A taller figure appeared beside him, a smirk and long blond hair with striking brown eyes.

She rubbed her fingers against each other in her folded hands, staring at the worn skin, wondering how many people who had tasted her fist in the past years. The blond haired person looked around in the room, obviously unsatisfied with the condition of the room.

"Geez, Sakura…what have you done huh…?"

The screaming stopped; they probably removed her mother to another place, trying to calm her down.

"I don't know…"

Sasuke snorted and crossed his arms, watching her. "Really? You are annoying, why are you lying…"

Sakura turned silent.

Tsunade glared at Sasuke, resisting the urge to slap him or something. When making sure the boy would behave she turned towards Sakura. "But you didn't do anything wrong did you Sakura…"

Her green eyes watched the opposite wall, her face expressionless.

"I don't understand…"

Both Sasuke and Tsunade turned towards her.

"…I wanted so badly to save Sasuke-kun…"

Her head dropped to the ground.

"…it is my fault you died…"

His face's expression didn't change.

"…I wanted him to live so badly…"

Tsunade's face relaxed and she watched Sakura.

The pink-haired kunoichi snickered and her right hand went through her pink bangs. "You are just my imagination…"

Sasuke frowned.

"I am going insane…"

They both looked at each other for a few seconds and then disappeared, leaving Sakura in her cell.

-

Naruto scratched his head. "Uhm…Tohru-chan, how about we uhm…go somewhere…I don't like the office so much…"

The young girl crossed her arms. "Very well…but you will be treating me…!"

"Eh? I am the Hokage!" he shuddered by the thought of the young girl reminding him so much of Sakura when they were younger, just like Sakura reminded him of Tsunade.

"HMF! Very well!" he snorted and stood up. Tohru smiled in victory and followed him out the door.

-

Sakura opened one eye when the door to her cell slowly opened, the creaking sound making her close her eye again in hope of it disappearing. She wasn't in the mood to talk.

The door closed with a bang and it was locked from the outside. Sakura wouldn't try to escape, no need to deny what she had done right?

There was a soft thud on the bed at the other wall, Sakura didn't bother to open her eyes she wasn't interested in talking, what was the point?

"Geez, Sakura…you really do look like a mess. "

She didn't answer.

"Has your forehead grown or something…?"

Sakura frowned with her eyes closed. "Shut up Ino…"

There was a snicker and the sheets rustled as Ino sat with her legs crossed, sticking her tongue out in a mocking motion. Sakura groaned and turned so she faced the wall, causing Ino to laugh out loud.

"Sakura, Sakura…I am here to visit you, cheer you up, try and appreciate my effort a bit, it wasn't easy getting here…"

Sakura forced herself to calm down. Why were people always disturbing her when she didn't need it?

"Sakur-aa" she continued, causing the pink haired to frown even deeper. Ino pouted and moved her legs so that she could rest her head on them. "Sakuraaaaaa…stop being a spoiled child and talk to me…"

"…"

Ino rolled her eyes and stroked her bangs backwards in an annoyed expression. "You are not improving your situation by saying nothing…"

"…"

Ino finally snapped and slammed her fist into the wall, not enough to make it crack, but the room shook for a second. "Sakura!"

Sakura opened her eyes and closed them again, only to having her own arms hugging herself, bending her legs so they touched her elbow.

"Geez! Why do you always have to act like this! Nobody died!"

Sakura flinched.

-

"_Sasuke-kun! Don't die!"_

_-_

"What is this…?" the young girl spoke rather disgusted.

Naruto looked up from his own ramen and turned his eyes towards the brunette.

"It's ramen! Eat! It is good!" he grinned, the girl stared at him with a hint of anger.

"You really don't care about Sakura-sama, if you are sitting here eating ramen with her apprentice…"

He stopped his movement with his chopsticks and his eyebrow turned downwards. She still glared at him, and he sighed a deep sigh.

"There must be some sort of misunderstanding here…" he started, but she interrupted him. "Why are you sitting here then? When she is rotting in a cell somewhere!"

He slammed his fist in the table, making it break into several large pieces. Tohru backed away, slightly startled by his reaction. "Why are you so mad?" she screamed.

"Don't you dare say that I don't care about Sakura…" dropping the suffix to prove the point.

Tohru narrowed her eyes further. "Then do something! My sensei is going to die beca-"

She stopped when she saw the Hokage sit with his head in his hands, his face hid behind his bangs. His shoulder shaking ever so lightly and could only be seen if you were a good observant.

"Sh…she blames me…"

"Huh?"

"Sakura blames me and herself for killing Sasuke…a…and that is why she is sitting in the prison right now…"

"Hokage-sama…"

He gazed at her with his blue watery eyes. "There is nothing I can do…"

Tohru looked at him confused.

"Don't you think I have tried everything?"

Tohru placed her hand on the rough surface of the table. Touching her bowl of soup.

"I can't help her, because she regrets it so much that she wants to die…"

She looked up.

"Hokage-sama! Don't speak like that…!"

-

"_How can I ever smile, knowing I killed my best friend? Without having him fulfilling his dream…"_

_-_

Ino took a hand into her bag and rummaged in it for a few seconds with Sakura watching her every move before she showed her a green book, with the title "Apples"

"You might be going to stay here for a while so I brought you a book for entertainment, which is the only thing you can do until the trial…"

Sakura reached out and touched the green paint and took the book with a firm grip. "What is the story?"

Ino sat back, and rubbed her cheek, yawning a bit. Spending two hours with a stubborn Sakura was troublesome. "Well you see…" She grinned again and her cheeks flushed a bit pink.

"It is about a kunoichi and a ninja…really, it is a very strange book, but this girl she has some issues with apples, her mom died because of apples and her father died on an apple farm…"

Sakura stared at the green front-page with a picture of a girl with her back turned towards the viewer.

-

_Watch my back._

_-_

"And the girl falls in love with a boy on another farm, however, the boy has some issues too, his family is dead too, but of other reasons I wont tell you. Despite that…" Ino noticed Sakura's far off look, but she continued anyway.

"The girl knows another boy who is a bit loud, but he is kind and sweet, and knows when to back off…"

Sakura turned her gaze towards Ino whose cheeks still held a tint of pink. "The good thing about this story is that you don't know who she'll end up with, truly amazing…"

"I would pick the last one…"

"Huh?" Ino looked at her confused. "Why?"

Clutching the book to her chest she closed her eyes and rested her head against the hard surface of the book. "Because who wouldn't want a person like that. Understanding, loving…even though he might be dumb…"

Ino grinned. "You know what…?"

"No…?"

"That sure sounds a lot like Naruto…"

Sakura's eyes shot open and she stared at the blond girl, who just shrugged. "I didn't say you loved him…"

-

A/N:

1: what is wrong with Sakura? It is just Sasuke!  
aaaah…okay, let me sum this up for you.

Let's see, Sakura has through all her life been very "addicted" to Sasuke, her whole mission with Naruto was to save Sasuke from Orochimaru and because of that she was derteminded to train for both Naruto and Sasuke.

Then what happens? It would be easier to deal with the loss if _someone else_ had killed him. However, that isn't the case, Sakura and Naruto _kills him_ with their _own hands_, meaning that they have to deal with not only the quilt of having their mission declared a failure. They also lose their goal, and lastly they must deal with the fact that Sasuke never managed to _kill his brother or avenging his family_. They KNEW that it was _everything_ for Sasuke.

Now Sakura knows, she was very capable of saving him from death, but was unable to do it. That is why Sakura feels even worse than Naruto, because she COULD have SAVED him, but she didn't and that is a quilt no-one easily shakes off. It doesn't help that she chooses to travel away from her home and Naruto, refusing to get over her quilt.

I sure hope this explains her obsession with Sasuke and Tsunade and why she seems very very insane. This is a normal reaction for some when they have to deal with death in this way. Sakura thinks she is a failure. I won't do something that would make her OOC, I use pure fact.(Tsunade though is just her motherly figure which she also could have saved if she didn't travel.)

2: NaruSaku!

Love doesn't come over night, let them deal with their problems first.

3: why did Sakura save the Tsuchikage.

Will be explained later in the story.

4: TemaShika!

I will deal with them later…I need to write about Gaara and Temari first. (fight!bwahaaha)

Thanks for all the support ect, I appreciate it. I have limited time to work on lately and don't have an easy time coping with things. (doesn't help I have to go to the doctor, buuuh.)

All right to Kishimoto!

extra note: I draw a bit in my sparetime, take a look in my profile for a link to the Rokudaime picture I made.

Cha-ne, review of flame me if necessary.


	5. Book 1 Chapter 5

"Hey…Hokage-sama…" Naruto looked up from his noodle soup. "What is it Tohru-san?" he asked, staring at the nervous looking girl.

"You know…I would like to visit my sensei before she gets to trial…" she rubbed her cheeks.

Naruto stared at her for a while, before he smiled. "Of course…"

She clutched her hands. "When…can I visit her?"

Naruto looked up at the ramen-stand-owner and paid him for both Tohru's and his meal. "Well…I have to take a look at it…even her mom cannot see her…not my fault that is…"

He motioned Tohru to follow him, which she did.

"Ino has got a permanent visa to her, Shikamaru and Temari can visit her two times and I have unlimited access…"

Tohru looked at him puzzled.

He looked at the blue sky, smiling sadly.

"When I go visit her today you can come with me…"

Her eyes widened. "Really?"

"Yup…"

He opened his, almost empty, frog wallet, hearing Tohru mutter something like "geez, is he an adult…"

"But first…" he said. "I need to get her something…"

-

"_Sasuke!" _

_The black-haired boy snorted and stared down at the blonde-haired boy and pink-haired girl. His face seeming like a mixture of disgust and frustration._

"_You hunted me down?"_

"_Sasuke-kun! Don't be like that; come home with us…to Konoha!" Sakura shrieked._

"…"

"_Sasuke!" Naruto continued, but was knocked off his feet when Sasuke jumped from the tree to the earth, slamming his fist into his face._

"_Sasuke-kun!" Sakura stood horrified, her hand clutching her white skirt. His face turned towards her, eyes narrow. _

"_You are an obstacle…I have to get rid of you…"_

"_Stop it! You are talking nonsense! I want to save you!" she closed her eyes, feeling the tears well up fast. _

"_We love you Sasuke-kun!"_

_He drew his sword and pointed it towards her throat. "That won't benefit me in any way…you are a hindrance…" _

_Despite all logic she threw herself at him, clutching him closely. "I fail! I should be strong! It kills me knowing that you are so far away from us Sasuke-kun!"_

"_you are weak Sakura…" she felt the cold steel against the back of her throat, fear of getting killed made her body shake even harder, her breath harsh from the rushing adrenaline. _

"_Weak people should be killed…"_

_She closed her eyes and rested her head against Sasuke's shoulder._

"_Sakura-chan!"_

_-_

Temari tapped her foot impatiently as she waited for her baby-brother to show up. She was both exited and dreaded the meeting. First off, it had been months since she had heard from any of her family members, but how should she explain her incident with Shikamaru?

Should she keep it a secret?

Claim that she had adopted it?

Claim that she had been raped?

She groaned.

"Ah! Kazekage-sama?"

Temari looked up and was slightly startled to see her brother's face close up, his face expressionless as always.

She smiled. "H…hey Gaara…"

He nodded and sat down, staring at her twisting hands. "What have you done?"

"What? Ehehe…I haven't done anything. No nothing…"

He didn't say anything and continued to stare at her. She glared back at him, wondering how her baby-brother had become so stubborn.

"How have you been Gaara…?"

"Fine…"

"Anything new in Sunagakure?"

"No…"

"How is Kankouru?"

"Fine…"

"How are-"

"Temari what is your relationship with Nara Shikamaru?"

Her eyes widened and she thought as it as a salvation when the waiter came and gave her two cups of tea.

Gaara glared at Temari. "Answer my question…"

She looked the other way and narrowed her eyes. Temari had a hard time figuring out what to do…what to do…what to do…because she knew that Shikamaru was not interested in a relationship, even if she was…

Because she realised something horrible in her mind.

She liked him…

But had yet to love him…

…like a woman loved a man…

…however, that wasn't the most horrifying…

She looked at Gaara through there trademark green eyes.

…Temari knew she would fall in love with the Nara Shikamaru if she stayed.

"I have no relationship besides friendship…"

Gaara sighed and took his tea and brought it to his lips.

"But there is something else I must tell you…" he looked up to see what she was going to say.

"…I have giving birth to a child who I do not know the father of…"

Gaara's eyes widened.

-

The guard saluted at the sight of the Hokage standing before him. Naruto proudly adjusted his black and orange coat, causing the guard to twist slightly. Tohru glared at him.

"I am here to visit Haruno Sakura…" Naruto smiled, causing the guard to smile brightly as he felt honoured by the presence of him. "Of course Hokage-sama! I just have to find the key!" the guard exclaimed and quickly ran through the hallway.

Tohru stared at Naruto, who looked at her puzzled. "What?"

"You could just do that like that?"

"Actually…usually Hokages are not allowed to do things like this…" he said and pocketed his hands in his coat, sniffling his nose.

"But…despite that…"

Tohru watched him.

"They owe me it…after I rescued the whole village back then…"

"W-"Tohru was about to ask when the happy guard came with the keys and handed them proudly to the grinning Naruto. "Thank you…!"

Tohru was mildly said…very curious.

-

"Tsuchikage! What are you doing here?" the rock ninja yelled surprised. The face of their leader alive and well was something very strange after his mysterious disappearance.

He coughed and cursed the medic for making him weaker by drugging him. "I am here…don't question why…"

The ninja frowned but saluted none the less. "Of course Tsuchikage!"

The tuschikage turned, "Raiki…"

The old man looked up to stare at his master. "Yes?"

"Raiki, get me a copy of all of Konoha's information on the current Hokage, name ect."

Raiki sighed and stood up with much difficulty, cracking his neck due to the lack of movement for four hours or more. "Anything specific you want me to look for?" he asked.

"Aah, yes for that matter of fact there is…"

The old man looked at him through his unusual grey eyes.

"There is a woman who might have accompanied the Hokage during his earlier life…" he crossed his arms. "If we find her then we have one of his weaknesses…"

Raiki nodded and motioned two of his students to follow him, claiming it was good training.

"Oh…one more thing."

The rock ninja looked puzzled at the clear blush on his master's face.

"There is a girl, Haruno Sakura…check her too…"

He sighed, it was a common thing with their kage, always been very obsessed with girls, no matter what their personality were.

"Of course…"

-

"You do not know the father?" Gaara said as he glared at his cool sister who just continued to drink her tea.

"And you didn't inform us?"

"…I was mentally exhausted from the birth…"

He crushed the cup within his hand, the sand shield making him unharmed. "That is a lie…"

"Gaara… can we discuss it when we get to Suna…I just want the child to grow up loved…"

He stared at her for a while. "Okay, but you can expect to be punished when we return, I hope you do not have many possesions..."

She shrugged. "Most of it is still in Suna…so that won't be a problem…"

"…"

Temari felt more than guilty, not because she had lied to Gaara, but because she had denied Shikamaru to be the father of his own child.

-

Sakura looked up when there was a hard knock on her door, Ino never knocked.

"Come in…" she muttered. She snorted; she didn't even decide who came or not, so why tell them to come in?

The door creaked upon and to her surprise she saw blonde hair and a toothy smile.

"Naruto…"

"Hey Sakura-chan!" he grinned. Not that she minded that Ino visited her, but she felt a bit more comfortable with him around, it was always like that after Sasuke ran off.

"Hi…" Sakura looked at the figure behind her and smiled. "Hey there Tohru-san…"

Naruto looked at them surprised, Sakura using such a formal tone toward a kid like her who she had been travelling with for two years.

"Sit down, sit down…"

Tohru nodded and sat down on the other bed, followed by Naruto.

"So…hi…"

"Hi…"

Naruto scratched his head and grinned. "I brought you a gift!"

Sakura blinked. "A gift?"

He blushed a bit and rummaged through his bag. "It is nothing special, and I don't really know what you like, so I brought you some fruit…"

She smiled and took the covered basket. Sakura pulled the blanket off and stared at the green surface of the apples.

"Apples…"

"Yup! I personally prefer ramen, but Tohru-chan told me you liked apples…!"

Sakura looked at Tohru who just shrugged, never understanding just why he called her chan in the first place.

Sakura then turned her gaze to the embarrassed Naruto. "Thank you…I appreciate it…"

He was puzzled for a few seconds before he gave her a mild smile. Tohru watched the exchange of looks, her teacher giving him a grateful look and he did the same to her.

If she didn't know her sensei better she would have guessed that they were more than just best friends. It gave her a happy feeling in her stomach.

Sakura looked at Tohru. "Did you train your chakra control Tohru-san"

She nodded. "Yes…I have almost reached the state of perfection"

It made Sakura's smile widen just a little bit, "why don't you go a train now? You can visit me later when we are alone; there are matters I would like to discuss with you…"

Tohru seemed a bit disappointed but obeyed her none the less, waving her goodbyes to the two adults.

Naruto looked at Sakura's bed and noticed a green looking book folded neatly on the sheets.

"What is that?"

She looked up and then to the book beside her, "oh…that is a book Ino gave me…"

He picked it up and began to read the backside. "What is it about?"

She brushed some of her pink hair behind her ear. "It is about a girl, whose parents died from apples both of them, and a boy whose parents gets killed by his uncle, and then another boy, who is the best friend of hers…"

His eyes locked with hers as she continued to speak. "It is a love story, but it is sort of different, most of the people would cheer on the boy without parents to get her…but I…"

She turned her gaze to the basket of apples. "…think that she should end up with the friend…he treats her better than the other one…"

Naruto stared at the roof and could feel a blush coming.

"He seems a lot like you…"

He grinned and leaned forward, resting his arms on his knees, his grinning head resting in his hands. Sakura felt herself get a bit embarrassed. "What are you looking at you idiot?"

He laughed and jumped back onto the bed, his laughter echoing through the room.

"What is wrong with you?" she screamed and crossed her arms, clearly offended.

-

"_Is there anyone you like Naruto?" _

_-_

"Shikamaru!"

The lazy ninja turned around and raised an eyebrow at the waving Ino running towards him.

"Shikamaruuuu!"

"I heard you already!" he said annoyed.

Ino panted hard as if she had been running several hours straight, but she smiled none-the-less. "Do you know where Chouji is…?"

He raised an eyebrow. "No…"

She slammed her fist together with the other. "Damn! I thought we should go and eat bbq for old time's sake…"

He pocketed his hands and stared at her. "Really? You might find him louring around near the old well…"

Before he could say anything else she had taken him by the hand and was busy dragging him down the street.

-

Jirayia stood stubbornly in front of the old council who glared daggers at him.

"What are you doing here Jirayia…?"

He smirked.

-

"_Hey…Sakura-chan…"_

"_Hm…?"_

"_Do you think that we will ever find Sasuke…do you think we can get him back…"_

_Sakura turned her head to study her friend closer._

"_What are you trying to say Naruto?"_

_As if he had been in a trance he woke up and shook his head furiously before grinning. "Oh! It was nothing!"_

_Sakura let it pass this time._

_-_

"Hanara Tohru? Who is she? I think I have heard the name before Jirayia…"

The white-haired man leaned back into his chair and continued to smirk, placing his hands tiredly on his stomach, chuckling.

"Aah yes…she should have a great reputation amongst those who have the bingo-book…"

Sai looked up from his seat. "Is it who I think she is?"

Jirayia continued smirking. "It wouldn't be a good idea if you executed Haruno Sakura…"

The old lady leaned forward in her seat, glaring daggers at him. "Why is that?"

Sai raised his hand and the leader motioned him to speak. "Because then Harana Tohru would lose her teacher…"

"So what?" another one echoed.

Jirayia slammed his fist into his table. "Because then Akatsuki will come to Konoha!"

The room was filled with silence.

"Excuse me…" one of them said, horrified with news.

"Hanara Tohru is trained under the supervision of Haruno Sakura, apprentice of the late Godaime who has to be the best medic that has ever existed. Hanara Tohru is in training to become…"

"The future Akatsuki-medic…" Sai finished.

-

"_Uchiha Itachi is you right?" Sakura screamed her fist ready to attack._

_He looked at her through his red emotionless eyes. "Haruno Sakura?"_

"_I am going to kill you!"_

"…"

"_For Sasuke-kun!"_

_Then everything went black._

_-_

"Chouji!" Ino screamed and caused the chubby ninja to turn around, a bag of chips visible in his hands, Shikamaru groaned a hi.

"Oih! Ino, Shikamaru…what are you doing here?"

Ino grinned and waved her hand back and forward. "Wanna go eating bbq Chouji? With me and lazy Shikamaru over there?" she said and pointed backwards to a shrugging ninja.

Chouji finished his bag of chips amazingly fast and grinned back. "Of course Ino! What do you think?"

Shikamaru had this feeling that he should have stayed home.

-

Temari watched as her tiny son moved in his sleep and she ran her fingers through the trade-mark black hair, knowing that he would be an outcast in the sand because of that.

She wasn't startled when the door to the room opened with a click.

"Oh…it is you…" a lazy voice said.

"Shikamaru…you are aware that I am leaving…"

"Yes…" he rummaged through the closet for some clothes.

"And that I am taking him with me…"

"Yes…" he found a pair of trousers.

She kissed the forehead of her child's and smiled. Shikamaru stared at her bended back, wondering how she had such wide hips and still held a certain unique sort of beauty.

He knew that he was going to miss her, but it was too troublesome to stop her. He sighed and took of his other pants, replacing them with another pair. Temari looked at him.

"Why are you changing?"

"Chouji spilled soy sauce all over them…"

"Oh…" she said and walked over to him, crossing her arms as she looked at him, his eyes turned towards her.

"Shikamaru…" her hands reached to touch his cheek, but he stopped her. "Don't Temari…"

"You can't stop me! Who do think I am! Just because it is too damn troublesome for you, doesn't mean it isn't important for me…!"

"I don't want to hurt you…"

"Shut up!"

She pushed him away, but he took her wrist.

"Why do have to be so darn troublesome…"

Temari knew when she looked into his black eyes that she was hopelessly in love, and she didn't like it.

"Shikamaru…" she whispered and pushed his head downwards so that her lips touched his ear. "I wouldn't be so darn troublesome if you just stopped being a cry-baby…"

Before she could say anything else she was pushed down to the floor, Shikamaru hovering above her, his face showing sign of deep frustration. She looked at him surprised and her green eyes showed her inner torment clearly.

"Shikamaru…wh-"

She couldn't say anything else before he bend down and kissed her forehead and slowly trailed his lips down her nose and down her cheek and lastly settled on her throat.

Temari knew she had to stop…because she was going to regret it…but she just couldn't, she was weak and she hated it.

Then he stopped all of sudden and stared down at her, his face flushed and his neat hair still tied in a bun. She looked the other way, she was rejecting him.

Shikamaru sighed and stood up, walking out the door without a word.

-

"_Hanara! "_

"_Yes, Zetsu-sama…!" the small girl shrieked as she saluted._

"_I have good news…" he continued, pointing at the unconscious pink-haired medic lying on the floor._

_Tohru raised an eyebrow._

"_This is your new teacher…"_

_She snorted and crossed her arms. "What is she good for? She couldn't even withstand Itachi-sama for even two minutes…"_

"_That is right…but look here…" he said and pointed towards the deep hole in her leg. Tohru bend down further and her eyes widened. "How…how can cells regenerate so fast Zetsu-sama?"_

_He eyed her for a second. "Because she has been trained under the legendary Sannin, Tsunade…"_

"_Is she going to train me…?"_

"_Yes, when she wakes up she will not have a choice…"_

_-_

"Hey Naruto…"

"Huh?" he looked up from her book and stared into her green eyes.

"Have you had a girlfriend while I was away?"

"W…what is that?"

"Just answer…" she said, a mischievous glint in her eyes.

He snorted and crossed his arms, not really comfortable with the conversation. "Very well…but you'll have to spill something for me too!"

She shrugged.

Naruto sighed and rubbed his cheeks, wondering how to explain it. "I had a short relationship with Hinata…"

Sakura got very curious.

"It lasted until Tsunade-no-baa-chan died, when I was promoted to Hokage, she said that she was only supposed to support me from the behind, not in the front like you or Ino or Temari…"

Sakura pitied the poor girl.

"I tried to convince her, but she said that she just couldn't…I really liked her back then…"

"So you had a girlfriend?"

"Yeah…"

Naruto then began to smirk, causing Sakura to glare at him. "What about you?"

Sakura shrugged. "No…"

He laughed. "Oh come on Sakura! Of course you had…"

"No…it isn't what you can call an intimate relationship anyway…"

"So you did have a boy-friend!"

She groaned. "No Naruto…it was more like a deal…"

-

"_Uchiha Itachi! I am going to kill you…!" Sakura screamed as she tried to get lose from the chakra strings around her legs and wrist. He just glared at her._

"_You killed Sasuke-kun! It is your fault! If you hadn't murdered his family then he would!"_

"…" _was all he said back to her._

_She glared at him._

"_You are weak…"_

_She flinched at the tone in his voice._

"_Blaming other people for your own faults…weakness…"_

"_Shut up! What do you know about this?"_

_He sat down on his knee and looked her straight into her eyes, the black dots strangely familiar. "You seem to forget my past don't you Haruno Sakura? I thought the apprentice of Tsunade would be much smarter than she seems to be right now…"_

_She felt the tears well up._

"_See…you are weak…that is why you killed Sasuke…"_

"_Shut up!"_

_-_

A/N: do I have a lot of questions to answer here?

1: how did the Tsuchikage get out?

He isn't the Tsuchikage for nothing; if he is the strongest ninja in Rock then it wouldn't cause him that much trouble getting out of Konoha.

2: Hanara Tohru! Medic? You gotta be kidding!

I am not, what do you think Sakura did while she was away?

3: ItaSaku?

No…tempting, but no, as it is said. "No, it wasn't an intimate relationship…it was more like a deal…" whoooops...did I just reveal something right then and there?

4: Aw! So Hinata broke up with him? Why?

See, Hinata is a shy girl, who crew up in the Hyuuga house, despite how you think she might be, she is still very loyal to her family, and when it means that Naruto become the Hokage her family might not like their relationship. Yes, pity her, because she does like Naruto. (Note that I say like, love and like are two different things and like is what most relationship actually is)

5: why the hell did Temari lie to Gaara?

What do you think Gaara would do to Shikamaru if he found out? No, he wouldn't force him to marry her, he would kill him. Even if she protested, it goes against the politic of Suna.

6: NaruSaku? How the hell is that going to develop?

Love often develops when there is formed a tight bond and secrets comes out.(most of the times) Sakura still believes that Naruto is the same as when they departed six years ago, therefore there might be a surprise in store for her. As with Naruto, he has no idea about Sakura's encounter with the akatsuki.

7: why the hell Akatsuki?

You'll see…

8: why didn't Gaara kill Temari for lying to him! he is OOC!

Is he? personnally Gaara is a very cold person, and he can't really do anything in Konoha, Temari knows that, but she has other things on her mind.

9: your style of writing is rather confusing.

It is? Well, I can understand the thing with jumping from paragraph to paragraph, but I have always been fond of throwing people into something, confuse them, because I like to do that. I am not that fond of details, it can be unecessary. I prefer to let their words and the few action they do make you get an impression of their personality ect.

Don't forget to check out my fanart on my profile XD(totally advertising...)

Wow…this story either turns for the worse or the better, as the author I just like writing it.

Review or flame me if you feel it necessary, remember I read all your reviews; I just tend to be very lazy in responding.

Remember, all rights to kishimoto.


	6. Book 1 Chapter 6

edited first time:

It seems that there has been a small misunderstanding, which I hope everyone will understand after this.  
Note, that when I say "Love" it is never love love, it more friendly love. When Sakura tells Sasuke she loves him, it is not because she is IN love with him, it is a mutual feeling amongst people who you care about.

I am sorry if it confuses anybody, but I am just that type of person who only 'loves' me friends, and only tells that to my friends. So when Naruto say "I love you" to Sakura, she knows it is the friendly type, and the opposite of course. Love to me is not what love is to many, so I hope that clears up the many difficult things in this.

You will know when people love one another like 'love love' in this story, believe me.

2nd note: Naruto do not have a crush on Sakura, he is just concerned. Who wouldn't be if your best friend was in prison? He would say the same thing to Sasuke...

-

Tohru watched as Naruto exited the chamber, motioning the tiny girl to enter the room, which she did gladly. The door closed with a bang and Naruto rested his head against the wall, his fist touching his chest.

He had this strange feeling about Sakura, something wasn't right, she was way too calm in a situation like this. What confused him even more was his offer for her to escape….

She refused.

-

"_Sakura…" his face turned serious and she looked at him surprised, she didn't remember him being like that when they were younger._

"_I can help you escape…Gaara will-"_

"_no Naruto…" she interrupted, raising her finger as if lecturing him._

"_I will not try to escape…"_

"_why? Sakura-chan, please don't be like that! " he said, "I don't want to be alone again…I don't want you to leave…"_

_She leaned back and crossed her legs, watching him. "Naruto…I will_ not_ try to escape…"_

"_Sakura-ch-"_

"_because I am a betrayer! And I_ have_ to be punished! You are the Hokage, you should know that of all people and not let your feelings interfere…!"_

_He slammed his hand into the madras, his eyes mad with furry. "you shouldn't be so careless Sakura-chan! I know you rescued the Tscuchikage but I don't want you to die…!"_

"_because Sakura-chan while you were gone I miss-"_

"_no Naruto!"_

_He looked startled._

"_no!" she threw the book at him, which he blocked with ease. His eyes widened as he tried to figure out what he might have done wrong._

"_don't say it! I don't want you to say it!"_

"…" _he stood numb at her words and didn't understand why she said that to him._

_-_

"Shikamaru I am going now…" Temari said as she stood in the doorway, a bag pack on her shoulders and the child secure in her arms.

He stood in the kitchen busy cutting cucumbers, which Temari thought as very strange since he preferred that she cooked the meals.

"hm…" was his only reply.

She narrowed her eyes and felt her heart clench.

"you are not going to say goodbye…"

"goodbye…"

She narrowed her eyes further. "are you made at me…"

"I overheard your conversation with Gaara…" he placed the cucumbers in a bowl and took another one, cutting is lazily.

She flinched and looked the other way, clutching the baby just a bit closer.

There was silence.

"I am sorry Shikamaru…"

"hm…"

"I said I am sor-!"

"I heard you already…" He turned his head around, to look at her. She frowned.

"Don't worry, I trust you…" a smirk on his face. "It isn't like you are stupid or anything, smart people makes mistakes too…"

He leaned his back against the table, gazing at her frowning face. "it is too troublesome dealing with a woman like you…"

She pointed her finger at him. "take it back…"

"…" he continued smirking.

"Shikamaru take it back!"

"…you sure are quite loud today…I take it back, I take it back…" he said, waving his hand lazily.

She frowned deeper and lowered her finger, adjusting the tiny human in her arms.

"Temari…"

She looked up, Shikamaru's face was serious. "expect that I will get missions to Suna and that I will come for a visit…unless you want me _that_ far out of your life…"

Temari sighed, before smiling. "of course you can…I am not the master of your life…"

His lips curled slowly into a smirk. "see you…"

She nodded and walked towards the front door, opening with a click before she turned and smiled. "hey…don't be such a cry-baby when I leave…"

He rolled his eyes, the smirk still there. "you are so full of yourself…"

-

Raiki watched as the Tsuchikage examined the papers he had copied, his face went into a deep frown. "Haruno Sakura…there is no records about her whereabouts for six years? How come…?"

"she went on a trip…"

"a trip?"

"yes, it was after the death of Uchiha Sasuke, who ironically was in the same team as them in their gennin days…"

He raised an eyebrow. "them?"

"The Hokage, Haruno Sakura and Uchiha Sasuke seems to have a connection…"

He leaned back into his seat, and stared into the ceiling. "is there any reports from the rock village about her?"

"yes…"

The tuschikage looked at Raiki.

"Haruno Sakura has been seen in the company of one Akatsuki member…however, it seems that she was more held captive than being there willingly…"

"who was it?"

"Uchiha Itachi…"

The tsuchikage's eyes widened and he slammed his fist into the desk. "Raiki! Give me all information of his current whereabouts, along with Uchiha Sasuke!"

Raiki was slightly startled, but nodded none the less, quickly departing.

The tuschikage had this feeling that this was starting to get more complicated.

-

Sakura seemed mad and Tohru didn't like when she was mad. Not that Sakura showed it clearly, it was just the way she moved her finger along the slow edge of the knife as she softly cut the apple into smaller pieces.

It was a habit she developed during her years of travel, and it was one of the first things Tohru noticed about her. Every time Deidara fed her she glared at him and told him that the apples wasn't cut nicely enough.

Of course the blond man later, was so offended that he screamed into her face, that she should cut them herself. Tohru had spend hours outside the bars and watched as Sakura crew more and more annoyed with her situation. That is why she always stroked the slow edge of the knife.

"Sakura-san?"

"hm…?" she said, her voice too cheerful to be true.

"Don't you like the Hokage…?"

"Of course I like that Hokage, he is a nice man…"

Tohru raised an eyebrow and hugged her knees; it wouldn't take long before she got thrown out, despite her desire to stay with her teacher.

"then why do you always fight? "

Sakura sighed and gave her the apple.

"Tohru-san…sometimes…you just don't know what to say, when you don't know how to talk to each other you tend to get mad…" she leaned her head against the wall. "Naruto is a sweet guy, he used to be so annoying when we were younger, but he was nice and you couldn't help but love him somehow…"

"do you love him now Sakura-san?"

Sakura stared at the ceiling.

"you know that Itachi-san wouldn't approve of it, and neither would Zetsu, or Kisame or Deidara…"

Sakura stroked her pink hair backwards.

"I don't love him Tohru-san…"

"why?"

Sakura made a short sigh. "Because Tohru-san, if I loved him I wouldn't be here now…then I wouldn't be your teacher and you would still be with Zetsu-san…"

Tohru frowned, but bit into the apple to shut her mouth.

"However…"

Sakura looked out the small window. "…I think…"

"maybe you should be a bit sweeter to him!" Tohru exclaimed, her mouth full of apples as she pointed accusing at her teacher. Sakura raised an eyebrow.

"I have heard from Ino that you two were good friends, but you have never hugged him or said hi to him ever since you saw him…-"

Tohru crossed her arms. "- …and I think he likes you very very much…"

Sakura smiled and stood up, stretching her sore limps. "you might be right Tohru-san…"

The door opened and the stern face of the guard appeared. Tohru jumped down from the bed and to the door.

"Tohru-san…!"

The girl looked around and barely managed to catch the apple. Sakura smiled. "give it to him as an apology and say to him that I want the 'teme' to forgive me…"

Tohru looked at the disappearing face of her teacher confused as the door closed.

-

"_Deidara!" _

_The blond boy looked up to see the face of Zetsu frowning, holding the screaming girl in his hand. Deidara quickly snatched the child from him and held her close._

"_what do you think you are doing! Hmm!" he cuddled the screaming girl close to his chest._

"_what I that? Why is the tiny girl in here…"_

_Deidara frowned and looked the other way and pouted offended. "don't be so mean to Tohru-chan…"_

"_you are sick…why the hell did you bring a child here…"_

_Deidara's hand licked the cheek of the giggling Tohru, his eyes downcast as if thinking of something very sad._

"_Because Tohru-chan doesn't have a mother anymore…"_

_Zetsu sighed and sat down opposite from him, staring at the child. "she doesn't seem special to me…she wouldn't benefit us in any way I can tell you…"_

_Deidara glared at the older man and turned around and gave Tohru a small clay doll. "she wouldn't harm us either…she might be able to get trained…"_

"_I wonder where you found her…she seems familiar…"_

"_yeah…her mom used to tell me stories about her being related to a San-"_

_Zetsu snorted. "so it was the mother? Did you promise her that you would take care of this kid? Deidara!"_

_The blonde narrowed his eyes. "you don't know anything…she was like a living art…her face was just…and her movements…"_

_Zetsu glared at him in disgust, "you filthy…I would more like to eat her…and get rid of the kid…if the leader sees her you know what he is going to do…"_

_Tohru was only four but already knew that she didn't like that man at all._

_-_

Sakura stretched lazily as Ino picked up a kunai from her side-pocket. "Sakura…your hair has grown really long in these past six years…."

She hissed when Ino teacifully pulled her by the hair and whispered into her ear. "who are you keeping it long for…"

Sakura rolled her eyes. "just cut it okay Ino? Seriously, you haven't changed at all…"

Ino smirked. "I could say the same to you…still the usually bitchy girl about everything…"

She leaned in further and narrowed her eyes teasingly, a smirk placed on her face. "you know what?"

Sakura groaned. "no?"

"while you were away Naruto has had quite the fangroup…"

Sakura raised her eyebrow. "so?"

"let me see…TenTen, Hinata has been after him…just to mention someone you know…" Sakura decided to continue the game and smirked herself.

"what about you Ino? Been on any dates with him…"

Ino smirked bigger. "you bet…!" she showed Sakura her hand and raised four fingers. "four dates to be exact…"

Sakura felt herself become angry.

"did you know that he is a good kisser?"

"are you talking about Lee or something, Naruto would never do that!"

Ino laughed. "you are very naïve Sakura. I asked him and he just followed me like a little lost puppy, and I was the one who kissed him first all the time…"

Sakura rolled her eyes. "doesn't surprise me…"

"but he seemed more than willing to kiss Hinata though…poor me…I wonder how he kissed her…must have been full of lo-"

"oh shut it Ino! Do I have to hear about every crush you have had in your whole life or what?"

Ino laughed even more. "someone is a bit jalous huh?"

Sakura narrowed her eyes dangerously and Ino just poked her forehead. "stop complaining and sit properly or your hair will get as ugly as your face…"

Sakura obeyed, despite the urge to kill her literally, and rested her head on her hands.

"Think that it has already been a week since you got imprisoned…" Ino said amused, the kunai cutting the pink edges with ease.

"When am I going to the trial?"

"Who knows…they are discussing it right now…and it has become the hot topic in Konoha…"

Sakura sighed.

-

Naruto scanned through the many pages of Sakura's file, adding bits here and there to fill out the empty spaces in her six year departure with the things she had told him.

There was a knock on the door, and Naruto groaned a reply, far too busy with his work.

"N…Naruto-kun…?"

He looked up and met the blushing face of Hinata, he grinned.

"hey Hinata…what can I do for you…?"

"…I…I…"

He closed the file, knowing that he wouldn't get any work done right now any way, and there wasn't anything he could add at the moment.

"I…uhm…wondered about…uhm…if you…I…uhm…"

"Hinata?"

The blush suddenly deepened several degrees and she took a deep breath.

"I wondered…if…you wanted to go visit Kurenai and Asuma-senseis grave…"

Naruto got a sad expression on his face. "ah, sorry Hinata…I would love to…but…" his face narrowed at the stack of papers on his desk, leaving only a small place available for his tea cup and ramen.

"…I am quite a busy man…" his face turned into a grin.

Hinata got calmer and smiled sweetly to him. "o…of course Naruto-kun…if there is anything I can help you with then…"

"Hinata-sama!"

Both of them looked at the open door to see Neiji panting as if he had run several miles.

"Neiji-san?"

"Hinata-sama…your father wants you to come and train with him…"

Hinata nodded and waved a goodbye to Hokage, and Neiji quickly apologized.

Naruto sat and wondered why he and Hinata never managed to get close at all. His eyes closed and he rubbed his temples. It was almost like fate was dragging them in two directions. However…

…Naruto never believed in things like that anyway.

-

_Sakura stood in front of the large gate to the hidden village of Rock, her visa clutched tightly in her hand as she moved towards the entrance, her headband hidden far away into her bagpack._

"_what can I help you with miss…?" the rock ninja said lazily as he watched her with dull interest._

_Sakura frowned and handed him the papers silently. _

_He the noticed her then and smirked lecherlish, Sakura cracked her knuckles as a threat, wondering if looks was that deceiving._

"_here you go!" he said and handed her the papers back, letting her walk into village._

_Sakura really didn't have any reason to go the rock village at all. She wasn't there for medic studies…_

_She was there to find Uchiha Itachi._

_-_

Jirayia leaned forward and groaned. He hadn't imagined the older geezers to be so stubborn; didn't they know how dangerous Akatsuki were? They were right about Konoha being one of the strongest villages, but that didn't mean that the non-ninja part of the village wouldn't suffer major crisis.

As well as the ninja's for that matter of fact.

The door opened and a surprised Naruto stood in the doorway. "oh…hey Erro-sennin…! What are you doing here…"

Jirayia never really understood how Naruto could be so cheerful.

"I am sitting and staring into the air…"

Naruto looked at him in disbelief and Jirayia just shrugged.

"Are you going to Sakura's trial?" He asked him.

Naruto placed the papers on the meeting table and stared at him. "of course I am…I can't let them do this to Sakura…"

The old man looked at him.

"Naruto…"

The hokage turned his head.

"I think you should stay away…"

He blinked, not once but twice. "w…what? Why?"

"just do it…"

Naruto began to get mad. "what is wrong with people! First I can't see Hinata, now I can't see Sakura!"

Jirayia felt himself get annoyed. "trust me Naruto, it is for your best…"

-

"_why did you lie to him Sakura?" Jirayia asked._

_Sakura looked away, hiding the wound on her arm. "Jirayia-sama…"_

"_Tsunade-sama lied to you too right…"_

_He frowned. "yes?"_

"_those reasons are the same as mine…"_

_He leaned back. "so that is why he doesn't know about Akatsuki?"_

_She flinched and hid her head. "yes…"_

"_you should tell him…"_

_She shook her head, her pink hair hiding what could be hid. "no…"_

_-_

Temari watched as the green areas slowly turned into sand and that Baki glared at the bundle in her arms. Her son had hardly complained, even when the weather turned up several degrees.

"must be the suna-genes" she muttered, Gaara turned his head and watched her with curiosity. Not because she seemed to be frowning, it was the exact opposite. Her mouth was curled into a tiny smile and he could feel the aura that usually accompanied a mother.

He didn't like it. She was happy in sad way. Her eyes were pained as if not wanting to leave Konoha in the first place.

Temari met his eyes and smiled. "We are going to make him a good boy, aren't we Gaara…"

He looked at her puzzled for a while and blamed her hormones, because she seemed very strange. With a sigh he nodded. "Yes Temari…we are going to treat him well…"

She grinned. "I have a hard time imagine you and Kankouru play with him…!"

He sighed.

-

Itachi sat in the small café drinking of his sake with no interest what so ever. The bitter taste didn't suit him and so did the after effects neither, he hated sake.

However, he just drank it out of habit. Spending days and hours in the company with Kisame something was due to rub off on you. To Itachi it was the alcohol and the need for it.

Deidara walked inside and sat at the same table as Kisame and Itachi, ordering a large cup of sake as well. It was something the Akatsuki had in common besides being missing-nins. They simply drank alcohol for the sake of just drinking it.

Itachi slurped the bitter taste and felt a warm feeling within his stomach, closing his eyes as he enjoyed the sensation, something he rarely did. Deidara watched him.

"I have news from Konoha and Tohru…" he said. Kisame's eyes lit up at the thought of the little mini-medic. It had been a few years since he had last seen her.

Itachi said nothing and took another sip.

"It seems that Sakura-san has been imprisoned…"

Kisame just waved it off. "so what? That girl is strong enough to make a building collapse; she will be out before the end of the month…"

Itachi took another.

Deidara's mood didn't lessen. "That's not it Kisame-san…"

The blue man looked at him confused.

"Sakura-san has been sent to the execution chair…they are going to have the trial tomorrow…"

Itachi opened his left eye, the cup resting at his closed lips and the alcohol burned the skin. He narrowed his eye.

Kisame shrugged and took the sake bottle and poured up some more. "We Akatsuki are individuals…Tohru-chan will be able to find another teacher soon…"

Itachi closed the eye and gulped the sake down, before speaking. "I wouldn't be too sure of that…"

The two others looked at him.

"If the child should benefit us in anyway as a medic a normal medic-teacher wouldn't be enough…"

Kisame chuckled. "So you are saying we should rescue Sakura-san?"

"No…"

Deidara narrowed his eyes; Itachi didn't take notice or just pretended not to care.

"I suggest that we find another purpose for Tohru-san…"

-

Naruto sat in his seat stiff, watching as the guards led Sakura the chair. Her pink hair was cut short again and he got a strange feeling in his stomach. She let her gaze drift towards him and quickly looked away, as if she was regretting something.

He turned his gaze towards Hinata, who looked sad and just nodded. Naruto sighed.

"Let the trial of Haruno Sakura begin!"

-

A/N:

1: I love Itachi!

So do I!

2: what? You are going to kill Sakura?

…

3: what is wrong with Shikamaru? Why isn't he stopping Temari? Or why isn't he mad?

Because Shikamaru is Shikamaru, he can be serious, but it is troublesome being mad all the time, and he knows it won't benefit any of them if he just pretended that he didn't know her at all. It might be my own opinion. But to me it is the closest reaction I thought I could get from him without making him waaay too OOC.

4: you have changed Tohru's personality!

Have I? Just think of her as a mini-Sakura. She respects Sakura very much, and also is very concerned about her, which is one of the reasons why she asks if Sakura hates Naruto.

5: Naruto and Sakura is way OOC! They would never fight like that! And why is Naruto a wuss?

Is he? Last time I studied the Naruto manga and anime, he never really yells at her or lectures her (the other time in this fiction was because Naruto was concerned about her…), and would rather just look at her with pity. And the reason why Sakura doesn't want him to say he missed her is from reasons I cannot yet reveal.

6: Sakura is hunting Itachi? What is going on?

Wait and see…(almost evil laugh)

7: aw! No ItaSaku?

It is tempting, but no…Sakura wants to kill him…and he might just kill her for being a pain in the ass.

8: Tsuchikage is just a tool for the story to progress right?

No…actually not, he plays are deeper role than you might think, will be revealed later on.

9: Kurenai and Asuma are dead? Didn't you say he was nearly dead?

They died of events that I might explain, which happened two years before Sakura returned, a short while before the death of Tsunade.

If you any other question concerning my style of writing or anything else for that matter of fact I will try and do my best by responding to it.

All rights to Kishimoto.

Flame or review if necessary (I sure love the nice ones….XD)


	7. Book 1 Chapter 7

"_run, run, cling to your life…run…run…run…"_

_-_

_Sakura didn't know how she had managed to escape, neither had she imagined herself in this position. Her hand was raised and the kunai was ready to trust into his throat. _

_Uchiha Itachi was her reason; it was what drove her. _

_His haunting red eyes and his unnatural face that held the lines of a female, but on him it was something that could be described as beautiful and masculine. He was just like Sasuke and yet so far away from him. Sakura needed to kill this man. He was the reason everything went wrong in everyone's lives._

_Itachi was going to regret making Haruno Sakura miserable._

_His face didn't move at all as she began to shake from fear. Right now she knew she wasn't a threat, she was just another stupid crazy woman who just _happened _to attack in the middle of the forest. Another kunai ready to take away his life._

_She narrowed her eyes as the tears slowly came. "…You…"_

"…" _He didn't answer._

"_You are evil!"_

_Itachi didn't care, she could tell. To her it was unbelievable. He was supposed to care. He was supposed to be terrified her. Because she was Haruno Sakura._

"_You are weak…"_

_She flinched at the cold tone of his voice and clenched the kunai closer. "No! I am not!"_

_He stared at her. "Plain…nothing out of the ordinary, just like everyone else…"_

_She began to get angry, but her hand just wouldn't move, she was transfixed with his eyes. _

"_Afraid…plain…just a mere shell that happens to cross my path"_

_Without knowing what happened Sakura felt the air in her throat caught and the world around her started to twirl._

"_**You blame me as a reason for your own pain…"**_

_Sakura couldn't help but gasp for her breath, her eyes unable to focus on anything besides his pretty face. _

"_**You are weak…I will not benefit from you…a weak person like you should die…"**_

_She whispered softly. _

"_I don't want to die…" _

_Her voice shook and she closed her eyes hard as the tears streamed down her face._

"_**I would kill you…slowly…painfully…just to make you realise how weak you are…"**_

_She opened one eye._

"_**You are not worthy among the living…"**_

_Sakura wondered how his face became brighter as the darkness around her increased. She hated him…hated him with all her heart. Despite that she knew, he was right…so she leaned back, hoping he would snap her neck and let her go._

"_**But it seems that Akatsuki might have some need for you after a little mistake one of the members did…"**_

_Sakura's eyes snapped open._

_-_

"Haruno Sakura…!"

She looked up to see the stern face of the ninja, his eyes glaring daggers at her.

Sakura didn't answer and just looked sadly into her lap.

"Haruno Sakura! Did you heal the Tuschikage?"

"…"

"Haruno Sakura?"

"Yes…" she whispered, not wanting to make her situation worse than it already was.

"For what reason?"

"…"

"Har…"

Shizune slammed her hand into the table, causing the ninja to turn around curiously. He met the furry of Shizune. "I command you to stop! It is unnecessary to treat her like an animal! I will personally advice you to keep your tone down, especially in front of the Hokage!"

The ninja stared at her for a while before turning to the Hokage, bowing in apology. Naruto said nothing and just observed.

"Why did you heal the Tsuchikage Haruno Sakura?"

Her green eyes watched as the wrinkles on the ninja's face showed the slight expression of anger, before she sighing spoke, "I do not desire telling you my reasons…"

The crowd began to mumble and the ninja in front of her glared. "Excuse me?"

"I do not desire to tell you my reasons…"

"For what reason?"

She fell silent.

"Haruno Sakura…!"

Shizune stood up and opened her mouth but Sakura interrupted.

"I will ask you a question…"

The ninja stared at her surprised.

"Imagine your goal…your only reason for existing disappear in front of your eyes…imagine the face of your dream lose the colour and disappear…"

The room went silent…

"Imagine that you killed that person you had for five years tried to make sure survived…how would you feel…"

He crossed his arms and watched her amused. "I would most likely not be here…"

Sakura snickered. "Now…If you still was here…?"

"I would redeem myself of course…!"

Sakura smiled and looked that other way. "That is my reason…"

Naruto clenched his fist; closing his eyes he knew what she meant.

-

"_Naruto…it is going to be alright…" Tsunade said comfortingly and placed her hand on his shoulder, embracing the sobbing youth from behind, as he cried out his sorrow._

_-_

_Sakura had walked away a long time ago and now stood sobbing behind a tree in the rain. Her clothes drenched as she touched the spot above her heart. She bit down her lip and whispered. "I didn't want to…I didn't want to kill you…"_

_-_

_Naruto looked up and saw the tombstone stand and it seemed to glare at him. The Uchiha symbol was engraved in the soft stone. He tensed and closed his eyes, but a smile went to his lips._

"_At least he is with his own mom and dad now…with his family…"_

_Tsunade looked at him…_

"_ev…even though he never revenged anything…he must be happy…to have a family…"_

_A smile escaped the stern face of Tsunade…"you sure are a good kid Naruto…"_

_He turned his head to see the tears trailing down her cheeks, her eyes closed. "You are strong…"_

_Before he could say anything she released her hold on him and placed her hand on the top of his head. "Promise me Naruto…don't let Sasuke take away your dream…fulfil yours for him…don't choose a way of revenge…"_

_He looked at her face before his face cracked into a grin, and gave her the good-guy pose, speaking loudly._

"_A man doesn't go back on his words!"_

_The 1st Hokage necklace shone brightly in the light of the red moon._

_-_

_Sakura looked up from the tree, her eyes narrow. Her fist hit the tree and it cracked loudly and hit the ground. _

_She was panting hard and the tears were gone, but the red marks under her eyes proved otherwise. Her eyes watched the red moon, before she silently spoke. "Uchiha Itachi…"_

_She cracked her knuckles._

"_I will kill you!"_

_-_

"So you saved the Tsuchikage for simple things like that…?"

She didn't say anything.

The ninja smirked. "We would forgive things like that, and punish you mildly…but something has interfered with things…a tiny secret…"

Jirayia stood up and slammed his fist down on the table. "Stop! I command you to stop!"

The jury and Naruto stared at him with surprised.

Ignoring the protest of the sannin he crossed his arms. "Haruno Sakura…you have been reportedly working with the group Akatsuki, which not only has been after the Kazekage…but our Hokage as well…"

Sakura's eyes widened.

So did Naruto's and he stared at her in disbelief, but all he saw was her terrified face. He narrowed his eyes and noticed her shoulder was shaking lightly.

"So…are you even a leaf ninja anymore?"

Naruto clenched his fist and looked the other way.

-

"_I will become the greatest Hokage! And I will die as Hokage!" he grinned big._

_Sakura and Tsunade looked at him dumbly before sighing, assuming that it was just Naruto babbling._

"_I swear! By the fourth that I will be the greatest…"_

_Tsunade smiled and pointed her finger at him, a smirk on her face. "Don't go back on your word…"_

"_Never! Hokage is my dream!"_

_-_

"Tell us about the Akatsuki Haruno Sakura…for what purpose did you contact them…?"

She clenched her fist and rubbed them together, as if trying to find the right words. Jirayia watched her.

"I did not contact them…"

The room roared in protest, and she hid her face behind her bangs. Naruto felt himself become angry.

"Haruno Sakura, please speak of what you know…"

"Sorry, I am not allowed too…"

The ninja narrowed his eyes. "Why is that Haruno Sakura?"

She glared at him. "I have my orders to not tell that either…"

The ninja snapped. "Well then! Bring me Hanara Tohru!"

-

"_You know…crying isn't going to bring Sasuke-kun back…" her voice was shaky._

"…" _Naruto didn't say anything._

"_I am here too…we will get stronger together…!" the tears trailing down her cheeks._

_-_

The small girl took hasty steps towards the small chair in front of the crowd, and sat down with a smile. The ninja stood before her. "Tohru-san…what do you know about Akatsuki…?"

She looked at him puzzled. "Who?"

He narrowed his eyes again. "The group that captured Haruno Sakura and made you her apprentice…"

"Oh…you mean Diedara-san and Itachi-san?"

He raised an eyebrow. "Yes?"

"They travel all the time! I never get to see them at all, and Sakura-san says that we should stay as far away from them as possible."

Naruto stared at Sakura who had turned completely white. His hands tightened harder, closing his eyes he remembered all the time she had done something like this to him.

-

_Chunnin exam, she said it was a new haircut._

_-_

_At the battle with Orochimaru and Naruto, she said it was Orochimaru who hurt her, when it was Naruto._

_-_

"So, it is true that you are a part of the Akatsuki Haruno Sakura?..."

"No…"

Then a chair was pushed back and a hand rose into the air lazily.

Nara Shikamaru stood with a bored expression on his face, yawning slightly.

"Yes, Nara Shikamaru?"

He cracked his neck. "I really don't see the problem here…"

"…?"

He cracked his knuckles. "Sure, maybe she did a mistake or two, but most importantly I have witnessed worse crimes and you are going to execute her…?"

Hinata stared at him.

"Aaah…you could almost say that…"

He smirked. "It is either a set up or you just really want to get rid of the Hokage…"

-

"Itachi-san I have never really understood yours and Sakura-san's relationship…" Deidara said half amusingly. Itachi watched him behind his cape, not desiring to answer.

"Isn't it something with she killed your brother?"

"…"

"Hey! Be a bit conversative here will you?"

-

"_Sakura-chan!" _

_Without her realising it she hit the ground and surprisingly she wasn't harmed. Naruto held the sword in his hands, blood dripping like water works to the ground. _

_Sakura was scared._

_-_

"_Run…run…cling to life…"_

_-_

"_I am going to kill you!"_

_-_

The Tsuchikage sighed. He could feel the frustration in his body as he turned a page more and once again found nothing on it. To be honest, it felt like something had been erased on purpose.

There was knock on the door.

"Yes?"

A smiling secretary walked in and placed a stack of paper on his desk. "Here you go Tsuchikage-sama… here are the records from the people entering the village from six years ago…"

He didn't smile back and took the files, turning the pages as he looked for a familiar name, something that might solve the big puzzle the past Tuschikage had left him.

-

"Nara Shikamaru! Just what are you insinuating!"

He sighed and opened his mouth, but was interrupted by Ino pushing her chair back. Her face was stern and clearly showed her inner furry, with a 'humph' she crossed her arms.

"I think he wants to say…"

Shikamaru looked at her.

"…That we won't let you execute Sakura just like that…"

The council member frowned. "You and who miss?" she skimmed the crowd, who shifted slightly under her intense gaze.

"No one I see…"

"I…I don't want to either…" said a rather embarrassed Hinata who also pushed her chair back. She poked her fingers together as she got rather nervous under the gaze from the others.

Neiji stared at her. "Hinata-sama…"

"…." She looked the other way, her face red as a tomato.

He smirked and stood up too beside her. "I agree…"

Then Shino, Kiba followed and Chouji threw his potato chips on the ground in protest, causing most of the crowd to gasp. Lee and Gai jumped punched the air and screamed that 'the spring of the youth' was in Naruto.

Kakashi stood, his book resting in his hand.

Rin stood too, followed by Shizune, and before anyone realized, the whole crowd was standing, causing the council member to mumble something in surprise.

Naruto stared into his jacket and the ninja turned to him. "Hokage-sama…what is your decision?"

-

"_Shizune! What is wrong with Tsunade! Wh…why is she lying there!" Naruto screamed as he stared at the weak Hokage._

_Shizune held him back and prevented him from touching her. "d…don't Naruto! She is sick…!"_

"_No-I…"_

"_don't worry Shizune…" the weak voice spoke, her eyes closed as she breath quickened due to the pain increasing._

_Naruto paled. "Tsunade-no-baa-chan…"_

_She smirked at him and motioned him to come closer. He obeyed._

_Naruto never liked seeing sick people, especially them close to him. She took his hand, clutching it harder than she intended to…but the painkillers had stopped working._

"_Naruto…"_

"…"

_She smirked, and closed her eyes as she hissed, bending herself upwards as if controlling the throbbing._

"_You have become a fine man…"_

"_Don't talk like that!" he yelled, his eyes watering quickly; Tsunade watched him amused and smiled, releasing his hand and touched the whiskers on his face._

"_I am so sad that Sakura isn't here…"_

_He didn't say anything and Shizune watched from the doorway, her head to the ground._

"_Naruto…"_

"…"

"_I…am going to see Dan and Nawaki soon…so..." she turned her eyes to Shizune who dried her tears away._

"_Shizune…write this down to the council…"_

_She sniffed, but nodded, taking a notepad and a pen._

"_I, Tsunade, the Godaime, hereby announce the future Rokudaime, as the heir of the Hokage position…to be…"_

_She clenched her hands and both Naruto and Shizune flinched, but she waved them off._

"_To be…Uzumaki Naruto…"_

_Everything suddenly was all too much for Naruto and he broke down sobbing, clutching her hand hard as he struggled to keep a calm face._

_She smiled. "Fulfil your dream Naruto…" she touched a tear on his cheek. _

"_Make me proud…"_

_-_

"Itachi! What are we doing in Konoha?" Kisame complained, obviously annoyed with the fact that they weren't going where they were supposed to.

"Causing a distraction…"

Kisame raised an eyebrow and glared. "What kind?"…

He pointed at a large building a bit far off and narrowed his eyes. "Explode…"

The shark man smirked. "Oh…you could have told me from the start…!"

With a single jump he was at the building and traced the rough surface with his hand. Satisfied with what he saw he pulled out his sword and smashed it into the wall, making it crack, and finally disperse into a thousand pieces.

"Weak…" he muttered.

Itachi just stood there.

-

Tohru who stood among the others in crowd ran towards Sakura as soon as the explosion was heard. Sakura willingly took her into her arms, cradling her as a protective mother. Naruto was by her side in a second, showing her out of the way.

Sakura unconsciously grabbed his arm and pulled him with her, causing both of them to land hard on the ground.

"What did you do that for!" she screamed. Naruto pointed at the sword in the wall. Sakura's eyes widened and whispered.

"Kisame…"

Naruto nodded and helped her stand up, but she showed Tohru into his hands.

"Tohru-san! Run out into the forest and meet me at the waterfall! I'll be back, wait for me!" those were her last words before she jumped out of the chaos, leaving a puzzled Naruto behind.

Tohru took his hand and motioned him to follow her rather roughly. "Come on! Hurry up!"

Naruto followed her.

-

"_Hmm…Jiraiya…is that you…?"_

_He leaned against the wall and watched her weak body. She smirked. "Don't look like you have just seen a ghost…"_

_He closed his eyes and looked at other way. "It is sad isn't it…?"_

_She looked puzzled. _

"_You…a sannin…powerless against something like this…"_

"_Oh…shut up Jiraiya…all you care about is to see if I will strip for you…"_

_He glared at her._

_She laughed brokenly. "Ah…sorry, sorry…I know…I know…"_

_Before she knew of it his hands was placed on top of hers, holding them tightly. _

"_Tsunade…"_

_She blinked._

"_Peeping is a lifestyle…and so is gambling…" his hands tightened their hold. "I promise I will defeat Orochimaru…"_

_She sighed and closed her eyes. _

"_Thank you…it makes me glad…"_

_-_

Naruto pulled Tohru back with a force unknown to her and pushed her to the ground as another building collapsed. "Tohru-san! Stay here…I need to take care of these!"

She looked at him scared. "Naruto-san! Is Akatsuki bad…"

He stared at her before he finally sighed. "Yes…that is why I have to stop them…"

She grabbed his jacket. "Don't be mad at Sakura-san! She is a good woman! Believe me!"

He smiled sadly and placed a hand on top of her head. "Sure she is…I am going to bring her back too…"

"Sakura-san says that she didn't want to do what she did Naruto-san! Don't kill her…please don't kill her…"

He stood up fully. "Even though I should…"

Tohru stood up too.

"As the Hokage I am willing to risk my life for everyone in this village…!"

-

Shikamaru glared at the falling pieces of stone as he softly spoke to Chouji. "I have this feeling that everything was a set up…that they used an opportunity like this to throw him off the position…"

Chouji looked at him confused. "What do you mean?"

"I have searched through some of the files in the Konoha library and there is no one who has been sentenced to death for what Sakura did. Don't you think it is odd that they are talking to her the way they did? It is almost like they have to find a reason to throw Naruto out of Konoha…"

Chouji watched him with interest. "But they won't be able to do that…!"

Shikamaru smirked. "Yes…. that is right…because he is the greatest Hokage that has ever lived…"

-

"…_Weak…"_

"_Sasuke-kun…"_

"_Sasuke! Apologize to Sakura-chan right now!"_

"_Not interested…"_

_-_

A/N: this turned out really weird. Why? Because I had too much explaining to do, and I just couldn't find the right atmosphere…I'll go to bed and sleep on it and see if I wake up depressed due to my failure as everything. (note: which means my life sucks right now)

1: What is the purpose of Akatsuki? Is that the reason why Sakura was in the rock?

No, and that is all I can say. Akatsuki is going to be used for other purposes. (I have this feeling that I am making a twisted plot line…again!)

2: you jump from scene, to scene to scene all the time!

I know, that is the technique. It is used to make the reader frustrated and start to imagine what is going on. I cut in the middle of the tense situation and goes on to something new…really…it is hard to explain, but I won't start a new technique in the middle of a story.

3: your grammar sucks!

Be grateful that I have gotten a beta-reader.

4: what is the mystery with Hinata and Naruto?

Since we won't see her in a LOOONG time, I guess I should explain.

Hinata is from the Hyuuga, a strict family with rules. Just look at Neiji and the branch family, and since Hinata is from the main branch the rules must be even worse there. Despite the fact that Naruto is the Hokage, Hiashi knows he has the Kyuubi inside him, and would most likely not allow Hinata to see him.

Naruto is the Hokage, and since he is Hokage he has lots of responsibilities and work, which means hardly any attention to either friends or other things. If you feel that this is sappy, don't sue me…I had the same problem with my x-boyfriend.

All rights to Kishimoto!

Thank you for my beloved beta reader, _causeIambetta._


	8. Book 1 Chapter 8

Jirayia cursed as he walked through the hallways of the Hokage-tower, the wrinkles in his face clearer due to his massive frowning. He only asked one thing.

"Where did Naruto go!"

The little boy jumped back frightened. "I…I don't know…"

He frowned even deeper and continued to walk through the halls.

-

"_Are you cold…?" the icy tone of Itachi's spoke._

_Sakura hid her head in her legs, wondering how to get lose of her chains and strangle the man before her. She flinched when the wound on her leg stung again._

"_No…" she answered._

"_You are lying…"_

_She didn't say anything after that, feeling to exhausted to fight with him right now. She closed her eyes and rested her head on her hands. Sleep would do her good._

_Without her realising it, he took her hand and pushed her to her feet. She was wide-eyed in surprise and stared at him confused, forgetting in a short second all her hate. She was too tired to think anyway. _

_His gaze pierced hers and clenched her wrist harder, making her flinch. The wound in her leg made her unable to stand steady and she fell limp to the ground, screaming as the wound opened again. Itachi watched her._

"_Damnit…" she cursed and brought her other hand to her leg, trying to find just little chakra to heal it._

_Itachi just stared at the blood running down her leg, as if he was thinking deep thoughts._

_-_

Sakura leaned against the tree trunk as she struggled to catch her breath. The ANBU had been after her ever since she ran through the 3rd security border, now it was just a matter of time before they found her. She smirked and made few new hand seals she had trained these last few years.

Feeling the genjutsu do its work she rested her head against the trunk. With a swift motion the ANBU flew past her, completely oblivious to their surroundings.

ANBU was some of the best ninjas, but challenging Tsunade's best apprentice was out of their league. She snorted and rubbed her temples, feeling a headache come her way. With a swift motion of her body she dodged the flying kunai and she fell into the mud.

She groaned even louder and sat up furious and met the face of the infamous Uchiha Itachi. He looked at her amused for a second. "You got mud in your face…"

She glared at him and rubbed her cheeks so the dirt came off. "Thank you for your great observation Itachi…you must enjoy making my life a living hell…"

"No…not really…"

Sakura wiped the last of the mud out of her face and watched as he had moved closer to her, a dangerous glint in his emotionless eyes. She turned her face upwards and studied it with a hint of anger. She knew very well enough that she couldn't defeat him in her current situation…

"You were the one who told them to invade Konoha?"

"…"

She looked away, disappointment in her chest. "You were…"

Sakura bit down in her lip. " I thought you were going to leave me alone from now on…I have no interest in you, except revenge…"

He watched her and after a few seconds he turned and disappeared into the woods.

-

With a few jumps Naruto managed to watch as an Akatsuki cloak flew forward and disappeared as if it hadn't been there in the first place. Cursing he realised that he had to hunt the down in another way.

Naruto jolted backwards when he saw a few ANBUs suddenly attack him from behind. He avoided them with ease and landed on a tree branch. He narrowed his eyes. "What are you doing!"

They bowed in apology and took out their kunais. "Sorry Rokudaime…but the Nanadaime has commanded your death…"

Naruto's eyes widened and he yelled as loud as he could "What? Are you telling me that the Nanadaime has been chosen? Why?"

The ANBU looked to the side as if in regretting something. "You have been banned from the hidden village of leaf and the Rokudaime is now officially a missing nin of the country of fire…"

Naruto calmed himself down. "Why?"

"It seems that the council had already chosen your successor and claimed that they had enough evidence on you to throw you off…"

One of the female ANBUs seemed to glare at him. "Because you are the Kyuubi!"

The Rokudaime stood stiff and felt their half gazes of hatred directed to him. His hands clenched as he tried to calm down. To think …that they would break the law…and believe that he…Naruto he…

Without a second thought he disappeared, but not without having kunai ripping in his lower part of his cape. Naruto needed to make sure they didn't lie to him; he wanted to be sure that this was a dream and he would wake up in his bed with Sasuke and Sakura banging his door, telling him to hurry up.

-

Sakura startled when the bush beside her moved furiously and with a swift movement of her hand she slammed it into the ground, causing it to crack. Of course she hadn't thought that it would attract the attention of ANBU, but she couldn't get too risky.

The person jumped out of the way as if it was the most natural thing in the world, and she hit the tree where it landed, the blow destroying an eight of the entire forest.

Panting hard Sakura quickly avoided the arm being brought at her and kicked the person hard in the neck, but nothing happened. Her eyes widened as she jumped backwards and stared terrified at the person before her.

Readjusting his glasses he readied his hands.

"Kabuto…"

He smirked and charged at her again, but she narrowed her eyes and pointed her finger at him. Kabuto was clearly aiming for her neck, so she had to avoid his hands as much as possible. With a swift motion of her hand she poked him and the middle of the chest while bending down so that his hand hit the tree before him.

He gasped as he felt his lung puncture on his right and quickly jumped backwards. Readjusting his glasses he glared at her. Sakura stood sternly without any emotion in her face, taking out her gloves from her small wallet on her leg.

He smirked. "You have grown strong"

She snorted and took the right glove into her mouth and placed the left firmly unto her hand.

He took his hand to his lung and healed it as much as he could, still panting hard from pain. "Orochimaru must have been mistaken"

Sakura raised an eyebrow at him.

"You have surpassed your teacher in more than one way, possibly grown to be the strongest woman in the world that has ever existed"

She put on her right glove and still glared at him.

He grinned as he felt himself become able to breathe again. "It is an honour…"

Sakura sighed, "You are just as Naruto…you talk way too much" before Kabuto knew what had happened she was behind him and her elbow ready to trust into his vulnerable neck. He managed to get out of the way just in time and watched as the ground she hit exploded into a thousand pieces.

"You are not getting away!"

He cursed at her speed and did a back flip landing on the tree. She ran towards it and slammed her fist into the soft wood, making it split in a half. Her brows furrowed and she jumped upwards, making a strike against Kabuto.

Just as she touched his skin it disappeared into a small pile of smoke. "Damnit! Kage-bunshin!"

"Watch your back…"

Sakura's eyes widened when she noticed that her flow of chakra had changed. Realising the he had closed the chakra hole in her right arm, she cursed. Sakura knew she would have to rely on her left arm for this fight.

"Don't underestimate me!" she screamed and turned the tree behind her into dust, Kabuto snickering as he jumped out of the way.

" I am not…but I have my orders Sakura-san"

They met halfway and he grabbed her right hand and grinned. Sakura furiously tried to hit him with her left, but was unable to due to the kunai Kabuto brought against her wrist.

He neared his face closer to hers and watched as the anger increased. "You do look pretty" out of nowhere she slammed her forehead into his, making her dizzy for a second, Kabuto fell to the ground, clutching his head in agony.

"Aargh!"

She panted and dried his blood off her forehead, cursing as she stumbled slightly backwards and needed to grab the nearest tree. With an ironic laugh she whispered to herself. "I have defiantly spent too much time with Naruto if I just did that"

He groaned and sat up, holding his head. Sakura seeing his state of vulnerability jumped into the trees and did few hand seals. He stared at her confused, when she yelled into the air.

"Katon! Karyo endan no jutsu…!"

His eyes widened as she drew in her breath and quickly did some hand seals himself. With one last inhale she blew and the large fireball hit the ground satisfying, the burning intensifying. She panted and stumbled a bit, but she was none the less still standing.

A foot behind her head caught her attention and she jumped backwards and landed on another branch. With a swift move with her hand she quickly did some other hand seals and closed her eyes. Kabuto narrowed his eyes when all of sudden she disappeared in a pile of leaves.

"Genjutsu…"

"Not quite"

His eyes widened when he felt a hand connect with his face, cracking his cheekbone. Sakura smirked shortly and kicked him in the stomach, breaking a few rips. He landed unconscious on the ground while Sakura landed before him.

"Damn…I loose too much chakra doing this…"

She closed her eyes.

-

"_Kabuto…" the grey-haired nin turned around and stared at the tired Orochimaru, who rested his head on his right hand, gazing at him_

"_Haruno Sakura…don't underestimate her…"_

"_I am not sir, she has tremendous power and it wouldn't be too much trouble if she is just like her teacher…"_

_Orochimaru chuckled. "Oh…that might be it…but did you know she was original a Genjutsu type that Haruno Sakura…"_

_He raised an eyebrow "she was?"_

"_Oh yes…and her chakra is almost flawless, I would say she would be able to perform many jutsus without loosing any chakra at all…"_

_Kabuto eyes widened in satisfaction as he walked out the door, still smirking._

_-_

Sakura sighed and felt for just a few seconds safe. With a satisfied grin she slumped down the tree trunk, wondering if Naruto was okay…and if Tohru would find her.

-

Temari awoke startled when a rather furious Kankuro threw her door. Groaning she dried her sleep eyes and glared at him. "What do you want?"

The baby turned in his sleep.

Her brother closed the door again and waited to see if she was going to kill him, before he spoke. "Konoha has thrown Naruto of the position…"

Suddenly she weren't tired anymore.

"What?"

"It is a conspiracy! They have been waiting for an opportunity like this!"

Temari waved her hands. "Wh…what wait? What are you saying? You can't do that…you can't throw the Hokage off ?"

Kankuro seemed a bit itchy and scratched his ear. "I know. Some of the ninjas are trying to kill him"

"Excuse me?"

"Don't worry. Shikamaru fellow isn't one of them…"

She sighed slightly and stood up, putting on her outfit before she looked at her baby boy. "Make Tayu take care of him, we are going to help Naruto"

Kankuro grinned. "Why do you think Gaara told me to get you?"

She smirked and cracked her knuckles. "Because your sister is damn smart"

-

Shikamaru jumped from tree to tree with Chouji following him faithfully behind. His face turned into a frown and Chouji noticed.

"I can't believe it." Shikamaru said. Chouji raised an eyebrow.

He jumped to another branch. "This was all a set up to get Naruto off the position…"

Ino came faithfully from the left side and followed the two of them while replying. "They say that Tsunade's heir can be thrown of it seeming unworthy by the council."

Chouji looked at her, Shikamaru just frowned deeper. "Does that mean they have waited two years to throw him off?"

Ino nodded. "I think so. Didn't you hear that there has been a rumour circulating?"

He looked at her.

"It's said that Naruto is the nine-tailed-fox who attacked the village twenty-three years ago."

Shikamaru's eyes widened and he bit his lower lip before stopping. His companions stopped beside him and stared at him confused. With a swift motion of his right hand he slapped himself on the forehead.

"It all makes sense…"

They looked puzzled.

"Naruto is the nine-tail…everything makes sense…the chunnin exam and the battle between him and the Tuschikage…the reason why Jirayia forbade him to lose his temper…it all makes sense…"

Ino looked the other way and brought her hand to her chest not sure what to feel right now. "So…is he dangerous?"

"I do-"

"Oh of course, he's not!" Shikamaru and Ino turned their heads to Chouji who stood proudly. "Naruto's has never hurt anyone, why should he do it now?"

Ino pointed her finger into the air, interrupting him. "May I add that Sakura has this weird claw-like scar on her right arm? She said it was Orochimaru, but I doubt with the shape of the scar it could impossibly be him."

Shikamaru stared into the tree trunk.

"So Naruto is dangerous, and we don't know what happened-"

"Shut up Ino…"

"I- what did you say, Chouji?"

"Naruto is our friend…he has been it for ten years…is it wrong that we suddenly begin to doubt him, when he has done nothing but gain our trust these past years."

Shikamaru stopped him. "Chouji, the village might not feel the same way…you know how people are."

He was silent. Ino stared at him with worry.

"We just have to get him out of the fire-country before the village hunts him down. This is so troublesome."

With a swift move they jumped from the tree branches into the dark of the night.

-

"Naruto!"

The blond haired Hokage turned around surprised, his fist ready to punch whomever tried to get in his way. He stopped when before him stood a panting Neiji, with a small girl clinging to his side.

"I heard that you were searching for Sakura-san, and this girl too so I brought her with me."

Naruto quickly jumped to the other branch and took Tohru in his arms. She looked at him strangely before obeying. Naruto noted quickly the stunning similarity between her and Tsunade, but it wasn't the time.

Neiji activated his Byukugan. "Don't worry, we are alone and you can find Sakura 2,426 miles northwest from here. She had to be teleporting. Hurry out of here."

"What is going on Neiji?"

"When you left the village to search for her out of nowhere they stopped all the ninjas from bringing you back. I was lucky that I was assigned to assassinate you."

Naruto flinched and narrowed his eyes.

"But even if I would I don't stand a chance against you." he smirked, before raising his hand towards him. "Please give me your forehead protector."

"What for?"

"I will give it as a proof that I have assassinated you. Hurry out of the fire-country and seek shelter somewhere else. Lets meet at the mile marker in the grass country three months from now, once Konoha is back at peace."

Naruto clutched Tohru closer. "I have no idea what is going on!"

"Just go! You are in major danger by staying here. If you don't get away you will die."

Neji narrowed his eyes, "Naruto, there's something about the Nanadaime I don't like…"

A branch cracked and Naruto turned his head, Neiji stopped him with his hand. "It's just Ino, Chouji and Shikamaru."

And true to his word, the infamous group ten stood before them. "Oiye. Naruto." Shikamaru called out.

Ino smirked, embracing the oblivious Naruto who just stared at her confused. She grinned and gave him a small peck on his cheek. Chouji humphed and looked the other way.

"So where're you going Naruto?"

He shrugged. "I don't know…I have to find Sakura first."

They nodded and Neiji motioned once more with his hand. With a heavy hand Naruto untied his forehead protector and gave it to him. Tohru watched him with curiosity.

"But Neiji, it isn't safe for Naruto to travel alone to the borders. They might be three, but Sakura and Naruto should have someone to aid them if trouble arises."

There were several exchanges between them before Shikamaru stood up. "Very well, I see no other option."

Chouji stared at him dumbfounded and was about to interrupt him, when Shikamaru stopped him with a single motion of his hand. "Don't, I would be able to help them more than any of you anyway. This just keeps on getting more troublesome."

Neiji glared at him. "You'll be expelled from Konoha!"

He sighed and rubbed his neck bored. "Of course I am, but that doesn't mean I haven't been aware of the current situation of the council." He smirked. "There is a reason I got this from you Naruto."

He showed him a piece of paper that allowed him to stay in the Sand-village. Naruto stared at him wide-eyed. "But that was four months ago!"

He shrugged. "I thought they would end it sooner, but of course they needed a reason to get you off. Why do you think they got Sakura back?"

"They were the ones?" said Naruto incredulously.

"Oh yes…they knew about her situation of the Akatsuki and the little girl there." Shikamaru pointed at little girl in Naruto's arms. "But I couldn't quite figure out why she helped the Tuschikage?"

Neiji folded his arms. "The Rock has retreated for now but it is just a matter of time before they get back and attack. It is for the better that you are off somewhere Naruto…"

The former Hokage seemed to think hard about the current information given to him, brushing his thumb across the whiskers on his face.

"Naruto, I will go with you and Sakura, and then split off to the Sand village." Turning to Ino and Chouji, "I will contact you guys as often as I can. It's for the better that they hide somewhere only I know of."

All of them nodded and Shikamaru cracked his knuckles. "Now, let's go off. What is our status Neiji?"

The Hyuuga seemed to examine the area for a bit and spoke. "ANBUs are heading our way; we need to move either northwest. That must be you, Shikamaru and the small girl. We go south and then turn around and move back to the village and give our proof of Naruto's disappearance."

They all looked at each other one last time, Ino seemed on the edge of tears and Neiji wore a tense look before he spoke again. "Naruto, I will take care of Hinata-sama for you. I will make sure she is one piece when you return."

Naruto waved his hand. "It's okay Neiji, just make sure that she is happy." He grinned, "Hinata is strong, let her find love somewhere else right now."

The Hyuuga stared at him for a moment before nodding.

With one last glance the trees' leave rustled. It seemed, as no one had ever been there in the first place.

Ino glanced backwards and smiled sadly. Chouji stared at her, "I didn't know you had feelings for Naruto Ino."

"Hah, who do you think I am? I am just very fond of him, that is all. He's a good guy Chouji, sort of like you…"

There was silence.

"We just liked to talk over a cup of ramen, and sometimes we laughed, other times we were sad. He missed Sakura just as much as I did. We just had a lot in common."

Chouji seemed to grin in relief. Neiji just continued to stare ahead, clenching the protector in his hand hard. With a small whisper he promised himself something. "I will protect Hinata-sama at all costs."

-

A/N: and then you say "what is going on?". I was a bit disappointed in myself because I felt like I was doing a horrible job explaining, and why should Naruto run away from Konoha? Yatta…yatta.

However, the story FINALLY begins. After eight chapter of some sort of prologue we are beginning at the "growth" part now. Sakura, Naruto, Shikamaru and Tohru are on the run. Don't be disappointed yet; Naruto isn't the former Hokage for nothing.

1: what is the whole thing with the council? Why didn't Shikamaru explain that…

Note: next chapter.

2: why did you call Sakura the strongest woman alive?  
- she is a medic  
- she can control her chakra perfectly  
- she can do many jutsus  
- her genjutsu is more perfected than Kurenai's  
- her strength is as strong as Tsunade's

tell me if you know anyone stronger.

3: does Ino love Naruto?

No….

4: what is the whole thing with Neiji/Hinata?  
whoops…did I forget to tell you that I like that couple. (please don't shout at me!) I won't make them a couple though, I can make hints ect. Bla bla bla.

5: I have no idea how you are going to make NaruSaku happen.

Real relationships (the one who last the longest mostly) are based on a long term friendship before hand so that you already know each other and learns to adapt. It can be awkward if it isn't returned, but if it is, it can turn out quite well.

Note: if you have ANY questions at all I will answer them personally. These questions are questions I do to make the story and the actions more understandable.

As you all know I have a link to my Rokudaime picture in my profile. I plan on making more. However, you are all welcome to do fanart…(this sounds actually pretty sappy) because my work is sloppy and I am very lazy when it comes to drawing. XD

All rights to Kishimoto.

And a biiiiig Thank you to my Beta-reader, causeIambetta.

Review or flame me if necessary. (remember, I like the ones who are nice and I like that ones coming with ideas for future progress…I take all your ideas in to consideration)


	9. Book 1 Chapter 9

When Neji sneaked across the roof, of the hokage building, he felt like someone's eyes bore into his back, trying to kill him from afar. It didn't take him long to activate his Byukugan, but he needed to be in a distance where he could hear what they were saying. To watch only what they said by mouth took a lot extra chakra, than he intended to use.

Hinata sneaked beside him, it hadn't taken him too much effort in convincing the heiress, to come with him. He didn't trust Hanabi with a situation at this, even though she was better at using the family doujutsu than his cousin ever would. Still, entrusting Hinata with a mission like this, improved his odds several degrees. Even if she should get caught, she wouldn't tell anything to the 'enemies' side.

She stared at him with a scared look, which caused him to give her a disapproving look. He was telling her with a stern look, that this weren't the time. Hinata gulped and nodded half heartily, not desiring to show weakness towards Neji, because she weren't going back on her word.

He would have smirked, but it weren't time for that. With a single motion with his hand he told her to activate the Byukugan and she did. With a satisfied frown he activated his own and rested his ear against the wall. Hinata did as well.

There was a soft chuckle and the Nanadaime laughed heartily, but the way he laughed seemed awfully disturbing. Hinata flinched at the tone, but she kept on examining the conversation. The voices were loud and a guy with a bandaged head and foot sat before him. Danzou sat in a chair opposite from the desk and Sai waited patiently outside the door, blissfully unaware of what was going on the room.

Hinata noticed that despite his usual lack of emotion, he somehow seemed very frustrated and angry.

"Ku-ku-ku, Kabuto, so you got quite beaten up?" the Nanadaime spoke.

The man called Kabuto sighed and adjusted his arm. "Unfortunate sir, I though didn't intend to…"

The hokage continued to chuckle. "Well, that is okay, Haruno Sakura is quite the woman isn't?"

Kabuto was silent for a while before he nodded, a bit annoyed with where the topic was starting to head. He cracked his neck.

"So you didn't put on a tracking device?"

"It was very complicated sir, with my life at risk I tried to touch her, but she is unreachable, her speed and strength outmatches my own."

He chuckled again and rubbed his clothes. "You had quite a trouble with Tsunade-hime, too…too bad she has left this world, I would have liked to be the one ending her life."

Kabuto smirked and nodded happily. "You are very strong sir, there is no way she could have defeated you."

Danzou looked up. "What about the Rock-country? With instability they have now it is a perfect opportunity to attack, Hokage-sama."

"Ku-ku-ku. Thank you for reminding me Danzou-san. Don't worry; I have everything under control, just get the ROOT ready to attack."

He nodded and leaned forward, watching the hidden face underneath the hokage hat. "What about the Rokudaime?"

The Hokage smirked and looked outside the window. "We'll take him out, once he returns to Konoha."

Kabuto raised a finger. "What about the Sand? The Rokudaime has connections with the Sand, and Haruno Sakura could at least destroy a sixth of the whole root division."

The hokage sighed. "Oh, one thing at the time, it will take a while before we'll destroy the Kyuubi. Right now we have other things on our mind, such as the Akatsuki."

Neji stopped and deactivated the byuukugan, Hinata did the same and turned towards him. Her fingers clutched her blouse and he frowned before motioning her to come with him. Silent as the wind they quickly flew across the rooftops, unaware of the piercing red sharingan eyes gazing on their backs.

-

Sakura jumped half-heartedly from tree to tree as she watched Naruto and Shikamaru need to hold back their own speed. Her feet landed roughly on the tree and remembered how confused she was when she awoke. Instead of a beat of Kabuto she had found a small girl clinging to her chest, a frowning Shikamaru and a tired Naruto.

They had hardly had any time to talk when Naruto janked her to her feet and dragged her with him. She had protested at first, until Shikamaru explained to her shortly had happened. She was numb at first and a pain in her heart slowly formed, but there was no time, so they jumped into the trees and headed to wherever Shikamaru thought best.

She could see that Naruto turned his head a little to watch her, his eyes pained. Sakura looked the other way, the quilt on her chest not easying. He saw that and looked the other way.

Shikamaru noted and turned his head backwards too, trying to find a solution to the problem.

"we better find a place to stay…" Naruto said.

He stared at him for a while before nodding. "Yes, Tohru might not be able to run that far anymore, she is afterall only ten, and it is going to get dark soon…"

They both jumped down to the ground, followed by the soft pads of Sakura landing in a small pile of leaves. Tohru secure on her back and sound asleep. Sakura seemed slightly annoyed with the whole situation, but followed them and laid Tohru on a small sheet, Shikamaru threw at her.

"hey…Sakura…"

She looked up at Naruto, whom stood with his hand pocketed and a slightly tired expression on his face. "do you mind if we go fix some water you and me…?"

She stared at him for a while, before nodding tiredly herself and stood up. He didn't even smile and walked towards the river not so far away.

-

Itachi sat at the small table in casual clothes, it was strange to not wear the usual cloudy cloak. Kisame were even more uncomfortable. They hid there faces underneath the baggy hoods and drank the sake in silence. Kisame eyed Itachi underneath his hood.

"you know…it is a mission given from the leader…stop running after that girl…"

He didn't answer and continued to drink the sake.

"I don't understand why you are chasing that girl anyway…"

"…"

He narrowed his eyes at his smaller companion. "do as you like…"

Itachi gazed at the uncomfortable couple beside them at another table. The woman seemed to twist nevoursly, while the man looked grim and tired. His eyes wandered and caught Itachi's for a moment. Frightened by the cold look, he focussed on his girlfriend.

"I don't like this…" he said after a moment. The woman looked up at him. He leaned in further and eyed their surroundings and whispered.

"I didn't like the way they threw out the Rokudaime…"

The woman looked down on messy skirt and whispered too. "I thought he was a nice Hokage…he managed to get the Rock out…"

He nodded and response and continued. "now! With the new one there has only been trouble in the streets. Maybe we should move away from here…it is not safe."

The woman's eyes widened before she narrowed her eyes. "no! this is our home, it is Konoha, and I will take it as it is…I am a leaf woman, I am not a sand or a rock or a water…"

"but it is not safe. "

She looked the other way and rested her hand on her teacup. "I wonder how the Rokudaime must feel…getting thrown out here, I have heard he was quite fond of the city."

Her boyfriend snorted and gulped down his sake. "yeah, I heard the too. However, I have heard something even stranger…"

She turned her gaze back to him.

"the lady…the Godaime's apprentice, Haruno Sakura I think. I have heard that they are married and she was expecting a child…"

"bu…but why would she save the Tuschikage then?" she exclaimed.

Suddenly out of no where popped out and sat two sake bottles on their tables. It was obvious he was drunk and he could hardly stand, but sat down beside them. "I have heard it was because the child was the Tuschikage…"

The girl gasped horrified. "but that means Haruno-sama is unfaithful to the Hokage!"

He nodded. "it seems so…"

She grabbed her scarf and bit down her lip. "she seemed as such a nice girl, and I couldn't imagine anyone do that to the Hokage. He is so handsome and…"

Her boyfriend eyed her and she quickly stopped talking and the blush on her cheeks intensified.

Kisame chuckled into his sake and Itachi gave him the look that this was not the time for funny things. Kisame shrugged his shoulders and watched as the conversation continued, before he whispered to Itachi. "it seems that they have yet to acknowledge the new one…they are quite fond of the Rokudaime or should I say Kyuubi…"

Itachi gulped down the sake.

"I would also say that you are slightly jealous…"

He froze and the cup rested on his lips the sake softly burning his skin. His eyes quickly shifted from the regular sharingan to the mangekyou. Kisame froze too and placed his cup on the table. "don't take it like that Itachi…I am teasing you…"

"good…" and the sake went down his throat. Kisame eyed him for a second.

The woman leaned forward and whispered. "I have heard that the child that she carries around. Tohru-sama…."

There was tension in their air.

"she is the love child of Sakura and the Tuschikage…"

The whole bar gasped and began to gather around the small table for more gossip. Kisame broke into a heartily laugh and even Itachi couldn't get the smile of his face.

-

_Sakura sat softly on the small rock, the snow surrounding them weren't cold at all. It almost felt very sweet on her face and calmed down her flaming inside._

_Tohru stood cold in the snow, her fist bruised, but her face showed determination. "Sakura-sama…" _

_Sakura looked up rather bored and stared at the smaller girl. "what?"_

"_I…I can't seem to get it right…"_

"_try again…"_

_The girl turned around rather mad. "but I can't!"_

_Sakura sighed. "stop complaining, just do it…"_

_She began to sniff. "But Sakura-sama…my hands hurt…"_

_She leaned back against the treetrunk and watched her. " Tohru-san…may I ask you a question…"_

_The small girl a sniffed, but nodded none the less._

"_do you know what a Shinobi is?"_

_Tohru looked confused._

"_that is what I am training you to be. The perfect killer machine that has no feelings"_

_She snorted and crossed her arms. "senseeei…"_

_But she continued. "because if you do…then you will lose everything you hold dear. The mistakes you make are clearer than you would imagine. The pain is twice as hard, because the friends you knew can turn to enemies…"_

"_Sakura-sensei…?"_

"_and you can't love anybody so solitude is your only option…"_

_-_

Naruto stood silently at the bay, his eyes transfixed on the moving water. Sakura stared at him shortly, but looked away quickly and fixed the water. She brought her lips to the water and swallowed just a bit.

Naruto scratched his head.

"Sakura…"

She didn't answer.

"I think…" she watched him out of the eye. "…Sakura I…"

With an anger she had never seen before, he kicked the dirt and screamed into the air. She was a bit startled by his sudden outburst and just stared at him.

His eyes watered at he felt himself become madder at himself. With a swift motion of his arm he dried the tears and walked away. Sakura somehow felt very guilty.

-

Night had never suited Shikamaru the most, and that was why he took the first night guard. So he could watch the forrest and not be uneasy with the fact that they were in a vulnerable situation.

He looked over his shoulder and watched Sakura lay awake and clutching the sheet tightly around her body. His eyes wandered to her sad eyes and sighed. "what is the matter with you…"

She didn't say anything and tightened her hands. Her eyes wandered to Naruto who slept with his back towards her a bit closer to Shikamaru.

"hm…come here…"

She stared at him for a moment before she stood up and walked to the log where he rested. She was tired, but unable to sleep. With a soft thump Sakura sat beside him and rubbed her tired eyes.

"you know…Sakura…I am kindda curious." She turned her head towards him. "…what did you do while you were away on that trip…"

She was numb for a few seconds before turning her head back. Focussing her eyes on her hands. "I guess I should tell you…"

"six years ago, you know that…Sasuke died." Those words were said with a bitter taste in her mouth. "and I decided to go away. I decided to take his revenge and fullfill it for him, in his spirit –"

"- of course Tsunade-sama knew what I was going to do so she did everything she could to prevent it. I guess I was too stubborn back then to see why. However, after a good month of trying to keep me in Konoha she gave me a secret.-"

"- she told me that Uchiha Itachi hid in the land of earth."

Shikamaru suddenly felt that some of the puzzles began to fit together.

"- by giving me a new identity that was never written down in any of the libraries, she made sure I couldn't be tracked in any way. These last six years I have been a hidden spy for Konoha to spy on the Tuschikage and the local surroundings. Jirayia knew what I was doing because I met him once, while searching for Itachi."

Shikamaru raised a finger. "what about the small girl Tohru…"

Sakura grinned while shaking her head. "I found Itachi, and I attacked him. I had trained so I was better, but I didn't stand a chance against him, so he captured me. When I woke up I had three months of mental torture and psychical in order to agree with them to take care of Tohru. "

She tightened her fingers, the anger clear in her voice. "Of course Itachi for some reason has decided to stalk me from that time. So I have used three years in trying to hide from him. One year ago I returned to the Earth and offered my assistances. Ironically they decided to let me be a spy on Konoha, not knowing that I was an original ninja from there. The new tuschikage did only know that I spied, he had never seen me before, he had never gotten my real name.-"

"- but the ninjas knew me. I didn't know that Tsunade-sama had died…" her voice broke a little. "so…when I came back, I decided to check in on her."

Her eyes wandered downwards. "but all I found was Naruto and the Konoha I knew completely demolished. None of what I knew was there anymore…"

"I was mad at Naruto…of course I was, I still am. I can't imagine him anywhere as a Hokage, it seems wrong…"

"I knew about the war, and I knew it was necessary for me to be on the frontline. I had to act for both sides, I couldn't blow my cover for the Rock, I still had a mission for Tsunade after all."

Shikamaru nodded. "so…the reason for saving the Tuschikage was? "

"act…"

Silence.

-

"_SAKURA! Stop! I command you to stop!" the wall collapsed and Sakura panted hard. All the escaping was hard on her still weak body, but she needed to get away._

_Shizune ran even faster and she knew that she had to catch her._

"_SAKURA!"_

_-_

"you should have told Naruto…"

She flinched.

-

"_LET ME GO! TSUNADE-SAMA! I beg you!" Sakura screamed and kicked with all her power against the air._

_The blond-haired woman scrowled down at her._

"_why should I treat you like I do…I am disappointed in you Sakura. I thought I had taught you better."_

_The tears began to stream._

"_I beg you! Please! Let me go!"_

_Tsunade looked sad. "Sakura…"_

"_please!"_

_-_

"no…"

Shikamaru got angry. "Sakura…Naruto is doing so much for you. He deserves to know. Stop being so selfish and grow up, this man was willing to almost throw himself of the position if the council hadn't done that first."

She rubbed her fingers together.

"That is why."

"What?" he asked.

"I destroyed his dream…how can I ever be forgiven from letting his dream die. He had just gotten the dream and now he is on the run, with me of all people. Naruto was the Hokage, and I know he'll never forgive me…if he does then I can't forgive myself."

"I destroyed Sasuke's dream…"

"and now Naruto's…"

-

"_MY DREAM IS BECOMING HOKAGE!"_

_-_

With a swift motion of her body she ran into the forest. Shikamaru unable to stop her.

He frowned and turned to Naruto.

"you should at least have said something…"

Naruto didn't say anything and curled himself together into a ball. His eyes wide-open and dry, but his skin was white and he looked like he had trouble breathing.

-

A/N: there is simply no A/N today, because I don't think I have anything to say. I am just awaiting the dreadful amount of flames. Oh yes, I do, so don't expect me to be rather happy today. I am sort of depressed, but that is of other reasons.

To your information the Sakura introduction and the **next chapter **is _the story of Tohru_.

Then I am going to work on Naruto and Sakura's relationship for two chapters most, and then go back to something else. (Damn, I thought this chapter should only last five chapters or so).

I am glad for ALL the fine reviews; it is better than the time when somebody stalked me in a fiction I wrote and called him fk of. (He couldn't spell to save his life may I add).

Review or flame me if necessary.

All rights to Kishimoto, the man whom I personally love.

Now, here is a small part from causeIambetta's poem made for my fiction. Check it out for yourself!

_Time marches on never ending  
time keeps its own time  
here we standing out our beginning  
even then there are those passing us by_

_and morning  
Morning  
morning will never be the same  
Now I wont make the same mistakes  
time and time again_


	10. Book 1 Chapter 10

Note to everyone: This chapter is a DOUBLE CHAPTER. We will start with the story of Tohru, and I have been so kind to make a map for you.

First Hokage/wife.

(1)Daughter/husband-Tsunade/Nanaki

(2)Son/wife - Son(Kim)/wife-Ohuhru/husband(Hanara)-Tohru

The Hokage gets two children. first one(1) ends in Tsunade and Nanaki. the second one(2) is ending in Tohru.

Hope this will help you! So basically Tohru is related to Tsunade.

**The Story of Tohru. **

Note: skip it if you are not interested.

-

_Deidara sat in the small bar, drinking sake as he watched the keeper throw out some violent men. It wasn't really that interesting to watch. It was just very strange that a small woman like her could give men such deadly glares. They ran away as fast as they could. _

_He chuckled slightly. _

_Then another man came up to her and she threw her arms around him. It had to be the husband, but Deidara could tell he was not all faithful. Looking dishevelled, shirt all ruffled, the husband didn't try too hard to hide it._

"_Is there anything else you want?" the woman said to him, a curious glint in her eyes. Diedara hid his hands and pouted while looking straight ahead. "More sake please…" she wrote it down nicely on her paper block. "Anything else?"_

_He watched as the fine curves of her writing reminded him of his own. How the small edges of the letters curled in a fine manner. Artistic. _

_He grinned. "You could put some salt in the sake please."_

_She stared at him for a while before nodding. Her walk was very fine too. She was a living art. Deidara laughed out loud at his own thoughts and tried to convince himself that she was nothing like what he imagined her to be._

_-_

"_Oh! Hello Deidara-san! Welcome back! Sake?" her happy tuned chimed across the room. He looked around, frowning. People must think he was an alcoholic, well, who cared?_

_He nodded and sat down at the table far away from everyone else._

_Within a minute she came back and placed the cup and bottle on the table. She smiled brightly, he raised an eyebrow. "Uhm…why are you so happy? Hmm"_

_She squealed and he had the urge to cover his ears._

"_My husband wants to have a child with me!"_

"_Who is your husband anyway?"_

"_Oh…he is a ninja for the sound, so he is hardly ever home." She pouted her lips. "But he is such a darling. I can't imagine me with anybody else."_

_Deidara gulped the sake down, not feeling the urge to tell about her husband's unfaithfulness. "Well…congrats to you. hmm"_

_She smiled kindly. "Thank you Deidara-san."_

_-_

_He stared at the growing womb, wondering if she carried a boy or a girl. "I never caught your name."_

"_Ohuhru…"_

"_Hmm?"_

"_Hanara Ohuhru."_

_He pondered slightly on the name, to him it was sorta…artistic._

"_what are you going to name your child?"_

"_Tohru!"_

_He groaned. "What if it is a boy?" She shook her head. "I just know it is a small pretty Tohru inside of me." _

_Deidara leaned forwards, gazing at her. "I think you would be a good ninja…" she smiled._

"_Really?"_

"_Yes."_

_She shook her head. "No, I don't want to. Ninjas kill all the time. They kill for money, I don't like that. I would rather stay home and watch the bar."_

_He smiled._

_-_

_He stared strangely at the little lump in her arms. "What is that?" _

"_That is a baby Diedara-san!" _

"_I can see…that…"_

_She snuggled it closer to her chest. "It is my little baby, right Tohru-chan! My beautiful little girl."_

_He growled, there was nothing artistic over that little girl's face, which was still red from the birth._

"_Where is your husband?"_

_She then looked sad. "He's on a mission…"_

_Deidara leaned against the railing, the sake was held hard in his palms. Ohuhru chuckled as she softly saw the brown eyes of her baby open. Deidara gulped the sake down. "hey…Ohuhru…I am a bit curious, hmm…"_

_She looked up. "What is it Deidara-san?"_

"_Is there in any way that you might be related to the Hokage?"_

_Ohuhru looked slightly startled, but took the thought to consideration. "I think…my granddad was the grandson of the first hokage…ah, yes…that is it…"_

_He watched her for a while. "Who opened the bar?"_

_She shook her head. "My mom opened this bar." she yawned a little, still tired from her strange light birth. "So there are no ninjas in this family anymore."_

_Deidara watched the child with interest. "I see."_

_-_

_Tohru tried hard to get her mother's attention as she sat on the floor desperately. Ohuhru bit down in her lip as her husband left the house drunk. She clutched her hand to her chest and felt her heart slowly breaking._

_Deidara sat at the table in the far end and drank his sake as always. His eye watched as Tohru cried silently, her mom watching the departed form of her husband. He would chuckle at the situation normally, but something prevented him._

_-_

"_Mama! Mama!" the small girl screamed as she ran through the small house, tears streaming down her face. Ohuhru turned around and gasped. "Tohru-chan! How did you get that rash!?"_

_The two-year old wailed hardly as she clutched tightly to her mothers dress. Ohuhru sat down on her knees and slowly stroked Tohru's head. The girl looked at her, tears still visible in her eyes. "saah…saah…Tohru…it is okay…"_

"_It hurt mama…" Ohuhru bend down softly and kissed the rash. Tohru stopped silently with crying, her eyes wide and wet. Ohuhru just smiled and poked her nose. "See…better now?"_

_-_

"_Deidara-san! What are you doing here?" Ohuhru exclaimed. Deidara looked up and crossed his arms. He stole a quick glance from Sasori behind him, who eyed the woman in curiosity. _

"_We came to take a drink." _

_She nodded shortly and showed the little three-year old girl out in front of him. Tohru eyes widened. "Deidara-san!" _

_Sasori glared at the rather embarrassed Deidara, who sat down on his knees. With a smirk he took some of the dirt on the ground and started to form it in his hands. Tohru watched with amazement how he formed the clay to a little daffodil, with ease. "Here you go Tohru-chan."_

_The girl grinned and jumped up and down in excitement. Ohuhru came with a small tray and sake. "Is there anything else?" she said kindly. Sasori shook his head and Deidara did so too. Tohru showed the small clay doll to her mom, who clapped her hands. "Oh! How pretty Tohru-chan!"_

"_Hee-hee!"_

_-_

"_You sure didn't have to help Deidara-san, you must have a long journey ahead of you." Ohuhru said smiling. He watched her slowly tuck her black hair behind her ear, watching her baby girl sleep._

"_I have a question for you"_

_She turned her head. "Hmm?"_

"_Where did your husband go?"_

_She frowned a bit and crossed her arms softly. "He had a mission." _

_Deidara frowned and adjusted his cape._

"_He said he probably wouldn't return. Something with an attack on Konoha…"_

_This caught his interest._

"_He did not return."_

"_Ohuhru-san?"_

"_Yes?"_

_He crossed his own arms and watched her with a strange look. "You did know he was unfaithful to you, right?"_

_She fell silent and began to fumble slightly with the curtain to the restaurant. _

"_I did…"_

_Deidara pushed his lips forward. Ohuhru slid the door to Tohru's room shut and turned around to watch Deidara stare at her. Her brows went up into a sad expression. "Deidara-san. It is not to be rude, but I will like you to go."_

_It didn't surprise him. "Very well. I understand."_

_They stood there in silence, her head turned to the ground, and his blue eye watching her black hair swirl softly around her head. "Ohuhru-san…"_

"_Yes?"_

"_Why do you not blame him? Hmm?"_

_Her head shot up and she stared at him surprised, her eyes teary and wet. "I…I…"_

_He watched her._

"_The thing is that. " a small smile on her lips._

"_no matter how many times I know he does something I shouldn't acknowledge. All those times where I know I should have done something to stop him, just something. Asked him to stay home with me – I just couldn't. I simply loved him too much to…" she dried her eyes. "…prevent him from doing anything."_

"_When you love someone that much you just know." she raised her head to watch the ceiling, the tears flowing freely. "He was a man I could just keep on loving. His soul was not kind, nor fine. However, he was a man who knew when to support and when to say the things you wanted to hear."_

_Her fingers intertwined. "I didn't want him to smile all the time, because when he did, I knew it was meant just for me, I knew his feelings were real for me. That is all I could ask for – that is why I loved him and still do. That is why Tohru is going to grow up like him, never give too much, because when you do give it means so much more."_

_She smiled brightly. "His memory in my memory is because I love him. Nothing is going to stop me…I married him because of that."_

_Deidara felt something, but he wasn't sure what._

_-_

_Deidara ran through the forest, his eyes on fire and his soul angry. Why had the leader not told him that the sound was going to attack THAT village? Why didn't he!?_

_The smell of fire was overwhelming, as was the smell of burned flesh too. He was used to death, used to it all too much. "Damnit!"_

_He broke through the forest and saw the small hut partly on fire. Sound-ninjas were trying to get into the private part of the building. With a speed seeming like a lightning he broke through the ninjas, killing them all as if it was childs play. One of them quickly avoided him, but with a swift movement his cheekbone was cracked. _

_The red-eyed teen stared angrily at the person before him and whispered. "Akatsuki…"_

_Deidara panted hard and could feel the sweat pearl down his cheek._

"_where is Itachi!?" _

_Deidara watched as the teen's eyes looked remarkably like Itachi's. "I don't got time for you." Then he stepped over the rather choked boy and entered the house. There was smoke everywhere and he could hear a small girl crying._

"_Tohru! Tohru! Where are you!?"_

_The hiccupping continued. He frowned deeply. _

_He had been to the house many times and could easily determine where the sound came from. "Tohru?"_

_The small girl looked up frightened and gasped shortly. He saw the small girl lean over the body of Ohuhru, whom seemed to have died from blood loss. _

"_Damnit!!" his fist collided with the wall hard and Tohru flinched shortly, the tears didn't seem to crease. _

"_Deidara-san! Mom won't say anything! Why doesn't mom want to talk to me!?"_

"…" _his breath hissed and he felt that it was very hard to actually breathe._

"_Deidara-san! Please! Help mom!"_

_He closed his eyes and clenched his fist._

_-_

_Tohru glanced at Deidara shortly and grabbed his cloak tightly within her hands. He made a few hand seals, but stopped the action for a short minute. Closing his eyes almost painfully he made a fire jutsu and watched as the body of Ohuhru disappeared alongside with the wooden board._

_Tohru clutched the small doll in her hands tighter. It was a small miniature doll of Deidara her mom had made her not so long ago. She had smiled and told her she should show him the next time he came again. _

"_Where did mommy go Deidara-san…?" she whispered quietly._

_He tensed and looked the other way. "Tohru-chan…"_

"_Hmm?"_

"_I am going to take you with me. Hmm"_

_-_

"_Deidara!" _

_The blond boy looked up to see the face of Zetsu frowning, holding the screaming girl in his hand. Deidara quickly snatched the child from him and held her close._

"_What do you think you are doing! Hmm!" he cuddled the screaming girl close to his chest._

"_What is that? Why is the tiny girl in here?!"_

_Deidara frowned and looked the other way and pouted offended. "Don't be so mean to Tohru-chan."_

"_you are sick. Why the hell did you bring a child here?"_

_Deidara's hand licked the cheek of the giggling Tohru, his eyes downcast as if thinking of something very sad._

"_Because Tohru-chan doesn't have a mother anymore…"_

_Zetsu sighed and sat down opposite from him, staring at the child. "She doesn't seem special to me. She wouldn't benefit us in any way I can tell you."_

_Deidara glared at the older man and turned around and gave Tohru a small clay doll. "She wouldn't harm us either. She might be able to get trained."_

"_I wonder where you found her. Sshe seems familiar…"_

"_Yeah…her mom used to tell me stories about her being related to a San-"_

_Zetsu snorted. "So it was the mother? Did you promise her that you would take care of this kid? Deidara!"_

_The blonde narrowed his eyes. "You don't know anything…she was like a living art…her face was just…and her movements…"_

_Zetsu glared at him in disgust, "You filthy…I would more like to eat her and get rid of the kid. If the leader sees her you know what he is going to do…"_

_Tohru was only four but already knew that she didn't like that man at all._

_-_

"_Itachi! Don't stare at her like that!" Deidara screamed as the small girl slowly backed away from the tall Uchiha. He just stared at her. _

"_Deidara?" Itachi asked._

_The blonde-haired man glared at him, "Yes?" _

"I have heard that you should let go of that girl."

"I know I know! But I promise you that this girl will become great! She can be trained!"

_He raised an eyebrow at him and crossed his arms. "Trained?" _

"Yes! Did you know that she is the living descendant of the first Hokage!?"

This seemed to catch Itachi's interest and his eyes widened just a tiny bit.

"The leader says that if we either get the Hokage or one of her two apprentices, we can train her to become our medic. She can even heal your eyes!"

Itachi promptly turned around and walked out of the room.

_-_

_Tohru watched as Itachi late at night slammed a door open. He was panting hard and had an open wound in his left side. On top of his shoulders lay a small lady with pink hair, wearing a red blouse and green pants. Tohru stood in awe for a moment, when she felt the leader place a hand on her shoulder.  
She flinched for a short moment._

"_This is your new teacher Hanara Tohru…we just have to get her to agree with us." He smiled brightly down at her. "She is going to teach you many great things. I promise you that." _

"What can she do?" she asked in an almost shy manner.

"We will see when you turn 13, and then we will come and get you. How about that?"

_She smiled sweetly and nodded. "That sounds like fun! But…"_

"_Hmm?" he eyed her._

"_She isn't very strong if she can't defeat Itachi. How can she make me strong then?" _

He laughed heartily and shook his head. "Don't worry Tohru, Itachi didn't go easy on her-"

"_- and this girl can do many things not even we the Akatsuki can."_

_-_

"_Hanara! "_

"_Yes, Zetsu-sama!" the small girl shrieked as she saluted._

"_I have good news." he continued, pointing at the unconscious pink-haired medic lying on the floor._

_Tohru raised an eyebrow._

"_This is your new teacher."_

_She snorted and crossed her arms. "What is she good for? She couldn't even withstand Itachi-sama for even two minutes."_

"_That is right but look here." he said and pointed towards the deep hole in her leg. Tohru bend down further and her eyes widened. "How…how can cells regenerate so fast Zetsu-sama?"_

_He eyed her for a second. "Because she has been trained under the legendary Sannin, Tsunade."_

"_Is she going to train me…?"_

"_Yes, when she wakes up she will not have a choice."_

_-_

_Sakura glared as she saw Zetsu lean over her, an expressionless face met her. She felt the urge to rip of the chains and punch like no tomorrow. "So have you decided?" he asked in an almost kind voice. Sakura snorted. _

"Kiss my ass."

He studied her for a while. "I would rather not."

_Tohru stood patiently in the doorway, and watched as the pink-haired woman wanted to rip out his throat. _

"_Why don't you go off and die! I would rather do that than stare at your ugly" Unexpectedly he hit her hard in the face, making her cheekbone break. She felt the need to puke all of sudden. _

"_We will torture you until you agree with our deal! Don't try and defy the Akatsuki." _

Sakura leaned forward, her eyes wide and slowly she felt the vomit in her stomach come up through her throat and land on the ground before her. She coughed and tried desperately to catch her breath.

_Tohru watched with a look of horror in her face._

_-_

"_Miss…?"_

_Sakura opened one eye, because the other was too swollen to open anyway. Tohru met a pair of light green, which was a deep contrast to her own deep brown._

"_Are you hungry miss?"_

_Sakura glared at her and leaned forward again, vomiting as if it was a normal thing. Tohru felt like she wanted to cry. "Why don't you answer me miss? Please?"_

_A harsh rusty voice met her. "Why should I?"_

_Tohru dried away her tears and hugged her Deidara-doll closer. "I am sorry for what Zetsu-san did…He didn't do it on purpose! I swear!"_

_Sakura watched her with a strange look and sighed softly. The chains on her wrist were beginning to slowly rub her skin off. The itching sensation not pleasing her a tiny bit!_

"_I am not hungry…"_

"_But miss! You have not eaten for four days."_

_Sakura eyed her. "You are probably used to eating everyday, huh?"_

_Tohru looked the other way almost shyly and poked her doll. "Yes miss…"_

_Sakura chuckled as much as she was capable too and motioned the girl to come closer. Tohru hesitated a bit, but followed her suit. _

"_What is your name girl?"_

"_Hanara Tohru…"_

_Sakura nodded. "Tohru-san then. What are you doing with these guys?"_

_Tohru smiled shyly. "Deidara-san brought me here when mama died, that is what he said. I don't remember mama…" she looked Sakura into the eye. "Itachi-san says that you are my new mama…"_

_Sakura blinked. "Excuse me?"_

"_You are my new mama…"_

"_I am sorry, but I am not going to be your mother…"_

_There was silence._

"_What is your name miss?"_

_Sakura watched her with that strange look again and rested her not broken cheek on her knees. "Sakura…"_

"_Haruno Sakura…"_

_Tohru smiled. "I think I like you Sakura-san!"_

_Sakura managed a weak smile._

_-_

So this was the story of Tohru. You can skip it if you want, unless you do want to read it. I think I have done Deidara OOC, but I don't know too much about him to know how he does act. I hope the story is okay.

**-**

**10th Chapter.**

-

Sakura panted hard as she stopped in front of a small lake. Her eyes red and puffy and she continuously rubbed her right arm, as some sort of comfort. She hiccupped shortly and sat down on a small log. Her eyes were closed and so was her mouth, except from her impulsive hiccupping from time to time.

She lay her head down on her knees and sobbed quietly. Her leg stung as she remembered the time in the Akatsuki-headquarters. She touched the scar lightly, but then grabbed it more forcefully, her eyes shimmering with tears.

"Itachi – if you just knew…"

She hiccupped again.

"How much I hate you."

-

_Slap._

"_Cooperate and we will release you." Zetsu said in monotone._

"…"

_Slap!_

"_do you listen!?"_

"_bite me." she hissed._

_This time he hit her. "Are you aware of who you are talking to!?"_

_She coughed up blood again._

"_Are you aware of who _you_ are talking to?" she repeated calmly._

_He narrowed his eyes. "I do not know what you think of yourself, but you are quite careless." He noticed the wound on her leg, which was begun to bleed again. "If you are that wonder medic they all say you are, then you should have chosen to heal that wound."_

"_Pain makes you stay alive." She whispered. "If it stops hurting I will heal it enough till it hurts again. It is for survival; only heal what is necessary…"_

_He snorted. "I'll give you to Itachi."_

_-_

_Itachi was not scary. Itachi was terrifying, mysterious, and she really wanted to run away from him. However, Sakura had always been a stubborn woman, so she glared._

_He wasn't the type who waited kindly, so he went straight to business. Mangekyou Sharingan. Sakura gaped as she fell to the ground._

_-_

"**_This is an illusion – and I will make you give me answers…"_**

_Sakura looked up half-heartedly to meet the faces of a thousand Itachis. His eyes boring into hers. **"There is twenty minutes and forty-five seconds left – I asked you a question"**_

"Which one?"_ she asked harshly, he showed the sword into his stomach._

"**_Who killed Sasuke?"_**

"…"

_One more time he stabbed her._

"_**Who?" **_

"I did…along with Naruto."  
**  
"For what reason did you kill him?"**

"I did…along with Naruto." 

"It was an accident."

**"…"**

Sakura closed her eyes for a short moment, feeling the sword turn inside her body. She wanted to scream so badly, but couldn't. **"Scream all you want, nobody can hear you."**

_She just stared at him. He didn't even flinch. "**I must admit that you have a stronger soul than Kakashi, you have yet to bend to my torture."**_

"_I would rather die."_

"**_Do as you please."_**

-

"…_are you cold?"_

_Sakura didn't answer and hid her face away from him. Itachi just stood there._

"_No…" she said._

"_You are lying. Why would you lie about a condition as yours, where you have been starving and freezing? Do you want to die that badly?"_

"…"

_He didn't even sigh when he spoke. "Hmm, I see."_

"_I want you to go away." She clenched her fist. "I want you to die so badly, that even my weaknesses turn to dust when I am near you. I want you to die even more than I want to live." Her eyes rose to him with fire. "You are the reason for every bad thing that has happened! I want you to die, hear me! I want you to die! I will not be happy before you die!"_

_She struggled in her chains. "You are the worst man I have ever met! I will kill you! Kill you!"_

_He stared at her. "If you say so…" and with those words he closed the door and left._

"_I will kill you!"_

_-_

"_We will kill him, you do know that right?" Deidara spoke as he sat down beside her, she wouldn't be able to harm him anyway. The leader scoffed. "Let her be, we won't benefit from her anymore. Jeez, all the trouble for nothing. Kill her, torture her if that is what you want, just get rid of her."_

_Deidara watched her. "I thought you were that strong kind that lasted forever. Look at you, all beaten up, I believe you if you say you can't talk."_

"…"

"_Tohru-san would have been in better hands if she was with you. Why don't you say yes? It is an investment. We will get you out of any trouble that may arise. We will help with money and all, if you just take care of a child."_

"…"

_He pouted. "Is your pride that big?" _

"…"

_He sighed. "You do know that they will kill your mom?" she flinched. "Ino" she closed her eyes at his voice._

"_Everyone in Konoha…"_

"_Even Naruto…"_

_She kicked him, or at least tried to. "Ugh! I don't care who you'll kill!"_

_Deidara knew she was lying._

_-_

"I am so sorry, Sasuke-kun, Tsunade, mom…-"

"…-and Naruto"

-

Tohru hugged the doll in her hands tighter as she watched the two people on each side of her. Naruto was to her left with Shikamaru. Sakura was on the right and had planted a firm hand on Tohru's shoulders.

Naruto eyed the doll in her hands. "Hey, Tohru? What kind of doll is that?"

The little girl smiled proudly and showed it to him. He could feel Sakura glare at him. Naruto took the doll and examined it. "It's good. Who made it?"

"My mom." Tohru said proudly. Naruto eyed her.

"Where is your mom now?"

"She is dead." The small girl said, without sounding sad at all. Naruto pocketed his hands and gave her the doll back. "My mom and dad are dead too."

That caught Tohru's attention. "Huh? Do you miss them?"

Naruto shrugged, feeling Sakura turn her gaze towards the road again.

"Naah. You can't miss anyone you have never met, can you?"

He cracked his neck softly. " I will not deny that I would like to have known them. It would be nice to be able to miss your parents." Naruto stole a glance from his pink-haired friend. "But now I have an even larger family, whom I cherish with all my heart. Every single one of them." He could see Shikamaru smile beside him.

Tohru hugged the doll closer. "I can't remember my mom either." Naruto smiled. "Well, then we have something in common right?" she nodded.

Sakura crossed her arms. "What about you Sakura-san? Do you have a mom or a dad?" Tohru asked.

Sakura eyed her too and sighed. "Yeah, I have a mom, and I have a dad."

"Do you miss them?" she asked again. Sakura hissed. "Don't ask unnecessary questions."

Naruto raised an eyebrow and felt Tohru come closer to him, and he knew that Sakura saw that. The pink-haired girl then jumped upwards on a small branch and yelled at Shikamaru. "we need to get out of the fire-country Shikamaru! It would be faster if we ran."

The lazy ninja sighed. "But Sakura, you know well enough that Tohru can't run as fast as us, and there is no way she is able to jump from branch to branch that easily without Academy training."

Both teacher and pupil frowned, Naruto sat down on his knees. "She is right, it would be faster." He then turned to Tohru. "Tohru, I can carry you on my back." The girl narrowed her eyes.

"A ninja should be able to stand up for herself Naruto-san. If she can't do that, then she is not a ninja. Ninja's shall only rely on themselves and not anybody else."

Both Naruto and Shikamaru glared shortly at the rather cold Sakura. Naruto sighed and patted Tohru's head. "It is okay for once. We are in a dangerous situation. We need to get out fast, and you are far away from our level Tohru-chan." he smiled. "Just for once it is okay to depend on others."

Shikamaru jumped into the tree as well. "Hurry up will you. The ANBU must be closer by now. We need to shake them off."

Tohru was about to go to the tree when Naruto grabbed her arm and pulled her upwards. He smiled at her. The little girl frowned, but crawled none the less up on his back.

They ran for a few hours and still Naruto wasn't tired and had not started sweating yet. Tohru clenched his shirt tighter and wondered if she should start a conversation.

"Naruto-san?"

He turned his head backwards a bit. "Huh?"

"Do you think my doll is pretty?"

Naruto blinked, before he smiled encouragingly. "Of course it is."

"But it is worn and old" she whispered, "and Sakura-san says I am too old to carry it around."

Naruto turned his head to watch Sakura's back as she flew forwards, landing on another branch. "I don't think so…" he said.

He grinned and showed her a small necklace that was mostly seen worn by girls. "This is a necklace from Tsunade-sama, It is really, really old and worn, and it is beginning to look ugly too." Tohru watched that blue stone shine brightly in the late evening sun.

"But I don't care. I wear it anyway, to show everyone that this person loved me very much. It doesn't matter if it is old, worthless or just plain ugly. If it is given to you because the person believes in you or loves you, then it will be the most precious thing you have ever received."

Tohru blushed and her mouth curled upwards. "Thank you, Naruto-san."

Naruto grinned evilly. "Want to try something fun?"

Tohru's eyes snapped open, but before she could say anything else she found herself flying high in the sky. With a feeling she had never experienced before they fell towards the branches. Sakura and Shikamaru were suddenly far behind.

Her stomach tickled with excitement at each time he jumped high into the air. Sakura's screaming seemed so far away and with an almost heavenly voice, she and Naruto joined together in a laugh.

Shikamaru smirked as he saw Sakura run faster to catch up with them both.

-

They stood silently and watched the fork. One road going to the rice-country, another to Suna. Shikamaru rubbed his cheek and sat down lazily. "Well, this is here we will part."

Everyone stood in silence, Tohru still on Naruto's back and a frowning Sakura beside them. The pink-haired girl sighed and sat down opposite from him. "let's camp here and leave in the morning, it will take you two days to reach the border of Suna anyways."

Tohru jumped down with ease and sat down beside Sakura. The woman gazed at her shortly and then looked away. Naruto lay down in the grass and watched as the stars began to form in the darkening sky. Unconsciously Sakura looked upwards too, seeing a small shooting star. With a small voice she whispered, "Pretty."

Shikamaru rummaged through his back and found three small cans and a stove. Naruto didn't say anything about the lack of ramen, and Sakura didn't comment about the unhealthy amount of fat there were in can-made food. Shikamaru knew they were ignoring each other.

"So, Sakura…where are you going exactly"

She looked at him shortly. "I have a small house at the border of the Rock-country. Tohru and I will probably stay there for a long time, until she is thirteen, I guess." Shikamaru nodded. "Naruto is going to stay there too, right?" Sakura nodded and opened her mouth, but was interrupted.

"I have been thinking." Naruto's voice echoed. "I should go somewhere else. Anbu are hunting me after all, it would be too dangerous if they attacked the three of us."

Sakura looked hurt for a second, but only for a second may I add. "Whatever. Do what you want."

Tohru looked the other way and clenched the doll closer. Shikamaru noticed. "Anything you want to say Tohru-chan?" The small girl avoided eye-contact with her teacher and stared at the ground.

"I would like Naruto-san to come with us." Naruto turned his eyes to see the small girl look embarrassed into the ground. Sakura was about to scold her, when she was interrupted again, this time by Shikamaru.

"I think you should go with them too Naruto. They obviously would need some help with the housekeeping and such." Sakura glared at him.

"Tohru might finish her training before schedule if Naruto was there too." Naruto shrugged shortly. Shikamaru checked the steaming cans for a second.

"He also did some amazing things during the attack from sound."

Sakura looked strange and was about to ask what Shikamaru was referring to, when Shikamaru continued. "And two Sannins are obviously better than one, right?"

-

That morning Shikamaru gave them a lazy goodbye and some money to by some food. "We will meet here again in a month, will exchange information then."

They all nodded and ran their separate ways.

Tohru was back hanging on to Naruto.

-

Holy crap! Did you know how long chapter 10 took me!? If it wasn't because I have a good beta-reader then it wouldn't have been done today.

Hurraaay, a new mystery came into the light. "what did Naruto do? And when did the sound attack?"

1: why is Sakura acting so bitchy again! God I hate her?  
Eh? I think it is pretty normal when you are hurting people, to become distant from them. She is feeling guilty over that she can tell Shikamaru and not Naruto. However, she didn't know that Naruto actually already knows.

2: what is wrong with Naruto!?  
He is hurt remember?

3: I hated Tohru's story, you suck!  
thank you. Anyway, Tohru's story could be skipped, if you wanted to read it, you read it. It just explains where Tohru came from. Diedara might be a bit out of character, but he is hard to do right.

4: what the hell? So Sakura is weird because she was tortured?  
She defiantly is. Being stubborn and held captive at the Akatsuki hideout. BAD IDEA. Sakura is mentally exhausted, and she has been forced to do many, many things she didn't want to. She almost has the whole world on her shoulders, if you can say so.

So now they have separated, what will happen then? Who knows? (obviously I do.) Naruto is going to train Tohru too now, what kind of freakish strong kid will she turn into?  
We are also slowly turning into "Naruto POV" or rather, background story. Sakura is not the only one who has had a rough six years.

5: there was also a question, saying why Danzou didn't strike when Tsunade died? This is really good explanation.

1) Danzou had to contact Orochimaru and negotiate an agreement

2) Danzou had to convince the council people:

3) Orochimaru had to set things up in the Sound for future plans and so it can withstand his prolonged absence

4) It would be rather suspicious if he tried to take over Konoha right away, especially when Tsunade had already pointed out a leader.

5) You try defeating all of Naruto's friends and Tsunade's.

6) Danzou had to prepare contingency plans if Orochimaru betrayed him


	11. Book 1 Chapter 11

"Let's camp here. It will take us two days to reach the house anyways," Sakura said, as she slowly inspected the cave. It was relatively dry and Tohru was the first one to enter without even looking for any danger.

Naruto shrugged. "Sure," he followed Tohru and looked around. He sniffled and pocketed his hands. Sakura asked Tohru to unpack their stuff, which the girl began doing so without any reply.

"I am going to look around…" was all Naruto said before he disappeared down the narrow cave. Sakura looked up quickly. Her eyes followed him until he was out of sight. Tohru watched her.

"Tohru-san."

"Yes Sakura-san?"

Sakura crossed her arms. "I want you to follow Naruto and make sure he doesn't do anything stupid."

Tohru didn't move to get up. She turns her head towards where Naruto had gone, "Sakura-san… I think Naruto-san is sad."

Sakura didn't say anything and began to rummage through her bag. Tohru grabbed the doll closer and looked at her teacher worriedly. "Is something wrong Sakura-san?"

"Tohru-san, just go will you?" There was no anger in her voice or anything trace of emotion at all. However, Tohru watched as her teacher's expression changed from one of frustration to one of worry. Tohru didn't understand what was going on.

-

"Woooow…" Naruto spoke out loud as he entered a small inner cave with a small lake. Small sun-rays went through the crystals in the ceiling, making the whole scenery surreal. He grinned and sat down at the water.

It was beautiful indeed, and Naruto felt like he was slowly starting to become a part of this place already.

A small water drop fell down on the lake, startling Naruto a bit. He eyed the water and sighed. He stood up and walked towards it, bending forward a bit to see his own reflection.

First it was an adult blond-boy who stared back at him. No grin, just a small smile and a kind face. Naruto scratched his ears and yawned. Slowly the image became orange and fur covered his face. His eyes became narrow and red.

"Kyuubi…"

Naruto stared at the reflection almost transfixed. His eyes were unreadable, and his forehead nearly touched the cold fragile water. He stared into the eyes of the other's image and then closed his own.

"Naruto-san?" He didn't move and Tohru stepped forward. "Hey!"

Naruto glanced at her and sat up, his hands placed on his knees. "What do you want?"

The little girl pouted and crossed her arms. "Sakura-san said I should make sure you didn't do anything stupid." He blinked.

"Really?"

"Yes."

He shook his head and tilted his head towards the ceiling. "I guess I've always been clumsy when I come to think about it."

"Huh?"

Naruto turned his eyes towards her. "Did you know I almost can't see with my left eye?"

Tohru blinked. "You can't?"

He nodded and motioned her to step forward, in a friendly manner. She did as she was told and sat down on her knees, watching his left eye with curiosity. "I lost most of the eyesight when the Sound attacked."

"When did they attack?"

He shrugged and flipped some of his hair away. "Three years ago. The night after Tsunade-no-baa-chan died."

Naruto narrowed his eyes at the memory. "I have had a suspicion all along that Danzou had something to do with it. However, as Hokage I needed to get the council's permission. You just can't go and make things on your own." He grinned shortly. "If I was younger I wouldn't have given a damn about them. But I promised Tsunade-no-baa-chan that I would be the best Hokage that had ever existed."

"So that night all of sudden, without any of us noticing, we were invaded by ninjas. It was horrible…" he paused. "…many children died, even women…everyone. Kurenai died that night too."

He looked up to the ceiling once more, trying to shake the gloomy atmosphere away.

"Naruto-san?"

"Yes?"

"Did you win?"

Naruto was silent for a while. "Yeah…" Again, silence.

"I was the one who killed half of the army in one stroke," he halfwhispered.

Looking towards Tohru, "That is why they accepted Tsunade's wish."

-

Shizune stood silently in the hallway, a huge stack of papers on her arms, when she met a familiar face. He looked up surprised too, before he smirked, readjusting his glasses.

"What are you doing here?!" she hissed.

He continued to smirk, which caused Shizune to quickly throw the papers into the air and directly attack him.

It did not surprise him, so Kabuto bent backwards, avoiding her fist and quickly turned around so he could point a kunai in her back. Shizune froze and stared at him shocked. Kabuto smirked.

"That is quite enough!" the new Nanadaime Hokage spoke, hidden behind the thick layers of clothes, making his face not visible. Kabuto released and pouted, obviously troubled the he couldn't kill her.

"I could use this girl you know. She seems quite capable of bringing paper back and forth. How about that?"

Shizune began to pick up the papers, still glaring at Kabuto who stood against the wall. The Hokage walked past her. "I would like the pages on Uzumaki Naruto please."

She stopped picking up papers and the Nanadaime smirked, still walking towards the office. When out of sight, Kabuto bent down and began to help her with the papers, the smirk still visible. Softly he whispered. "So, you're still that bitch's faithful servant?"

He was hit hard across his cheek, which startled him slightly, his eyes wide. Shizune stood panting with anger. "I know who you are, and I know what you are trying to do. Don't underestimate me when I say that Naruto-kun is coming back and beats your ass!"

Kabuto didn't say anything and just stared at her before he began to chuckle. "Whatever you say. He won't survive anyway. We have sent all the Konoha ANBU's out there to eliminate him. Plus every Sound ANBU team. Against the strongest ANBUS in the all the ninja lands, Naruto won't stand a chance."

Shizune stood frozen as Kabuto's chuckling turned into outright laughter.

-

_Tsunade slammed the sake down on the table. "Uzumaki Naruto! I hereby challenge you to a drinking contest!"_

_The blond-haired kid watched the Hokage and Jirayia stand before him with a scowl on their faces. "what are you talking about! I am only nineteen!?"_

"_sit down on your damn butt and drink!"_

"_Tsunade-sama, please, he is not old enough." Shizune said worriedly. Tsunade glared at her for a second and sat down defeated herself, before she let out a chuckle. Naruto pouted and took his tea and clutched it tightly. "I won't be an alcoholic like you" he muttered._

_Tsunade suddenly grabbed him by the shirt and screamed into his face. "What did you call me?!"_

"_You wanna to fight!?" Naruto shouted back. Shizune and Jirayia sighed and followed the two of them._

_Tsunade stood proudly and Naruto stood with his arms crossed. The old woman grinned. "Come at me."_

_Naruto frowned and jumped into the air, followed by Tsunade._

_Shizune sighed. "I don't get it. They always end up fighting, and no one ever wins. He's too fast and she's got too good a defence."_

_Jirayia crossed his arms. "Give Naruto a year or two and he would be able to defeat me in a battle. With Tsunade teac-"_

"_You freaking kid! Come back here!" the Hokage yelled as Naruto quickly fled across the rooftops. A heavenly laughter filling the air._

"_I understand. He has already surpassed both me and Kakashi, and is almost at your level now. That Naruto is amazing." Shizune smiled proudly. "He is defiantly going to become the greatest Hokage ever!"_

-

"I don't care if you believe a bunch of those kids can take out Naruto-sama, but I know…" Shizune placed her hand over her heart, but kept her glare, "that he will definitely come back. And he will throw you out along with your master."

Kabuto stood up and glared back. "We will see."

-

"Sakura-san"

The pink-haired looked away from the fire and watched her student. "What is it Tohru-san?" The little girl began to fumble with her hands.

"Tohru-san?"

"Did you know that Naruto-san can't see with his left eye"

Silence.

"Excuse me?"

Tohru sat down on a small rock and brushed back her brown hair. "Naruto-san told me that he damaged his eyes when he was 22. Because he needed to protect someone."

Sakura stood still for a moment. "So he can't see with it?"

The small girl nodded. "Yes…" Tohru looked up shyly. "Sakura-san could you-"

"Tohru-san, I would like you to go fix some water. I need to make dinner and then we will practice chakra control. You got it?"

Tohru eyed her teacher before she stood up, trying not go groan. "Of course Sakura-san. How much water do you need?"

Sakura began to fix the cans and found a small pot. "I need enough for three people."

The small girl ran out of the cave, noticing a strange look on her teacher's face.

-

"_Tsunade…"_

_He sat there, watching her still body. Her face covered with a white cloth, her life long gone, yet her sweet smile lingered in the room. Jirayia standing beside him, a hand firmly placed on his shoulder, the same expression on his face._

"_It…hurts" Naruto whispered, his hand clutching his shirt. His eyes closed. "I just…it is Tsunade-no-baa-chan after all, she shouldn't…" hiccup "…die just like that"_

_Jirayia tightened his hold. "Don't worry Naruto, she wishes us our best. All we can do is live for her now."_

_Naruto dried his eyes, not caring if he had to turn twenty two in a few months. It hurt and there was no doubt about that. _

"_I really loved her Ero-sennin. She was…like a mom to me, or what I think was a mom." Sniff "I didn't want her to die!"_

_Jiraiya watched the white cloth, hoping to catch a glimpse of her body rising because she was breathing. But there was nothing. He closed his eyes and slowly, for the first time in many years, ever since Orochimaru's departure, Jiraiya let tears trail down his cheeks._

"_Yes, it hurts."_

_Naruto looked up at him for a second and his eyes widened. The proud man he knew was crying clear tears, just as big as his. Naruto bit down in his lower lip and fell down hard on the floor. Forgetting all about being calm and collected, "TSUNADE-NO-BAA-CHAN!"_

_-_

Gaara rose from his seat when Temari entered with a rather bruised Shikamaru at her side. She was frowning and seemed very mad for some reason.

"This runt here came to explain the Konoha situation, Gaara."

Shikamaru stole a quick glance from Temari and Gaara noticed, his eyes narrowing. "Temari, please excuse us, I think I need to have a chat with this ninja."

Temari turned to her brother and crossed her arms stubbornly. "Very well, I will be waiting outside."

Shikamaru was asked to sit down, and he did tiredly, feeling the bump on his head increase in pain. He groaned slightly. Gaara watched him. "What has happened to Konoha?"

Shikamaru snickered slightly and leaned forward. "What has _not_ happened? Naruto, Sakura and I are now hunted throughout all the countries of the nin-lands. The only place I could think was relatively safe was here, even though you are allies with Konoha."

Gaara narrowed his eyes. "Naruto hunted? What happened?"

Shikamaru groaned again and rubbed his head. "It all started when Haruno Sakura returned…"

-

Temari quietly showed him the small room in the Hokage house, telling him that he was welcome to stay in Suna. She tried to pretend that he didn't give her that gentle look, and that the fact that his hand brushed against hers was only accidentally. Temari had to believe that, no matter how she felt for him she needed to be calm and collected. There was nothing there but a child between them now. They didn't need to be together.

"Temari, why are you avoiding me?"

"I am not, so stop seeing things that don't exist." She hissed those words, tucking on her dress. He crooked his neck a little and crossed his arms.

"Don't Shikamaru, I told you already…"

"Would it change anything if I said that I didn't ONLY like you?"

She narrowed her eyes and opened the door to a hallway. "Will you just shut up! I don't want Gaara to be more suspicious at me than he already is."

Shikamaru narrowed his eyes in return. "If I asked you to marry me, would it make any difference?!"

Temari turned around and slammed the door shut to the hallway again. Leaving her and him together in silence in his little room, her was glare obvious. "No it wouldn't. You don't understand do you? It is never so easy. We can't go around living like a married couple like that. Haven't I told you there is nothing between us anymore?"

Shikamaru glared back. "Yes you have, and you know very well that your feelings are still there. Don't freaking pretend like you don't give a damn."

She punched him hard on the cheek and he landed on the floor, surprised. "Stop acting like a kid and grow up! I thought you were the smart one. I can't save you all the time, you are lucky that Gaara hasn't killed you yet!"

Temari opened the door and ran down the hallway. She barely avoided a surprised Kankouru, who stared at the bruised Shikamaru. He glared back at him. "Don't tell me that my suspicion was right…"

-

Naruto sat down tiredly on the rock beside Sakura. It was late at night and the stars were shinning brightly. He leaned back and smiled sadly as watching the stars reminded him of so many things.

He knew that she was watching him.

"What?" he asked.

She turned her head the other way offended and pouted. Obviously unsatisfied with the fact that he caught her staring. It was strange though, because he could barely see her with his left eye.

"Is there anything you want?" he asked again.

Sakura then mumbled something into her hands. He raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"I know about your eye" she whispered. Naruto bent himself forward, watching her, his heart clenched. He still hasn't forgiven the fact that she didn't tell him the truth. He turned his head to the ground. "It's okay. I am used to it by now."

There was silence.

"I can heal it you know." This time, her gaze rested on his face with a stubborn look. Naruto smiled kindly at the ground.

"Naah, it's alright. Can't change things anyway." There was a sad expression on his face.

Sakura clenched her fists, and glared at the ground. The sky became cloudy and all of sudden the area was filled with rain. However, since they were sitting in the cave, they didn't get wet.

-

_Sakura tilted her head downwards as she watched Tsunade try to keep herself sober after the many bottles of sake. There was a frown on her face, when she pushed the cup towards Sakura, who tried to keep herself awake._

_Sakura looked up and found Tsunade staring at her._

"_Sakura, you do know that you are the only one…"_

_The pink-haired girl stared at her confused. "Tsunade-sama?"_

"_You were the only one who had the ability to surpass Shizune, and even me." Tsunade's eyes rested on her. "It was you, not any other girl. No, not Naruto, not Sasuke. It was only you."_

_Sakura was silent. _

_Tsunade gulped down another cup of sake and Sakura was about to stop her, when she continued. "Shizune would be a better Hokage than I have ever been., I am just the strongest of her and me. However, you Sakura…" _

"…_you have the ability to surpass both me and Shizune. And any other medic-nin for that matter." Tsunade smiled. _

"_I am proud of you."_

_Sakura felt a strange feeling in her chest._

_-_

"Stop being like that!" Sakura screamed, and rose to her feet. Her eyes narrowing at him. "Don't you trust me at all!? Do you think I'm incompetent?!"

He stared at her. "That is not it I…"

"What? You always let me depend on you? But NOW that I can help you, you won't even let me?!"

Naruto narrowed his eyes and stood up himself. "What do you know?! You don't know a thing do you! All you think is that it was only your fault that Sasuke died!" she flinched. "I was there too you know! I am here too, you know! All you care about is how you have been treated!"

He turned around, to hide his sad, yet angry face. "You said you were lonely, but you have a family to return to. You had so many people! I had no one. And all I did was admire how good you were back then! That you had this perfect chakra control. That you were the one who turned out better than me! Hell, Sasuke turned out better than me!"

"How do you think I felt! I was so lonely after Tsunade died! I have felt lonely for over half my life …"

She was about to yell at him when he interrupted her, his shoulders shaking.

"I …I…_loved_ you Sakura! I respected that you left the city, but please…" he stood still for a second and breathed deep, surprised by his own actions. "I just…" he turned around. "…don't want you to tell me that I haven't felt pain too. Don't you think I haven't made sacrifices..."

"I don't want to be a bother to you Sakura. That is why I offered to go away. If you don't want me to go with you tell me now. I'll understand. You should just know that I trust you Sakura, and all I want is your happiness."

She furrowed her brows.

"But I was there too. I have cried too…"

Before Sakura could say anything in return, he disappeared far into the forest. Sakura gasped shortly and ran out of the cave into the rain. "NARUTO!"

When there was no reply she brought a hand to her mouth and closed her eyes. Tears streaming down her cheeks. "Naruto…"

-

A/N: Yay, new chapter. Hahahaha. Okay, seriously, this chapter has a lot of drama, and I even surprised myself by making Naruto act like he did. Yet, somehow I had the feeling that it was the right thing to do.

However, it is late, and I do not know what to explain, which isn't going to be explained in other chapters, so no questions today. Despite that there is an **IMPORTANT THING YOU SHOULD NOTICE.**

"**Naruto _Loved _Sakura!"**

It is important that you don't think he is in love with her now, and that Sakura is in love with Naruto. I use the word _love_ differently than most people. It takes time to care for a person really much.

Review or Flame me if necessary.

Note: **favs: _30_ alerts: _41_** (I am so proud of myself!!).

All rights to Kishimoto!


	12. Book 1 Chapter 12

_Shikamaru wandered through the halls of the Hokage building, sighing deeply. He didn't really understand why he was the one who had to find Naruto. It wasn't his fault that Naruto had left the party without a notice. There wasn't a problem in him leaving the party. The problem was that it was a party for _him.

_Shikamaru opened the door to the council room, but there was nothing but empty silence. He frowned and walked down to the final door. The Hokage office._

"_Naruto?" he asked as he softly turned the handle, to reveal the dimly lit room. Naruto stood with his back towards him, gazing at the picture frames on his desk. The small table lamp giving the room a soft glow.. _

"_Naruto? What are you doing here?" Shikamaru asked again._

_Naruto took the nearest frame and gazed at it. Tsunade, Jirayia were looking like they were going to kill each other. Naruto was squeezed in between him and Shizune who desperately tried to calm everyone down. He smiled sadly and the turned his gaze to the team-seven picture and the smile disappeared._

_His eyes gazed softly at the long-haired Sakura and the frowning Sasuke. Naruto closed his eyes and put the frame down on the table again. "I just wanted to think."_

_Shikamaru tilted his head, "You are doing that a lot lately, you should stop creeping me out like that," there was a hint of sarcasm in his voice and Naruto sighed. The third frame consisted of him and Hinata pointing at the small resort hotel down the road. A frowning Neji with a Lee vigorously hugging him was off to the side. Ten Ten was trying to calm both down. Ino and Chouji were sitting back and laughing in the back ground._

"_I just don't feel right about this Shikamaru." His voice was emotionless. "All this – this happiness, I just don't feel it's right." He turned around and he had deep bangs under his eyes. "I…I wanted them to be here Shikamaru, but they are not – I am the reason they are not here" he closed his eyes pained._

_Shikamaru crossed his arms. "Naruto-"_

_The shadow user looked into the ground. "There are things in life we want to so badly. When Asuma died I thought the world had ended – everything, the pain I felt cannot be compared to what I have felt before. He was like a second father; I wanted him so desperately to see me when I did something great. Ino and Chouji – everything, I can't tell how I felt like I was going to break._

"_I lost one."_

_He looked up at Naruto, who just stared out the window. "You have lost so much more Naruto, and I know that the pain must be worse-_

"_-but Naruto. It is time to let the past be past."_

_Naruto walked out of the office. "I am taking a walk."_

_-_

_Naruto stared silently at the road before him. Two people had taken that road and left him, none of them came back._

_He sighed and pocketed his hands, what a pathetic Hokage he was being right now. He should be celebrating all of this, his promotion, his life, hell he even had a girlfriend. Well, as girlfriendly as Hinata could be around them. _

_She was a shy girl; mind that and she would maybe kiss him on the mouth once or twice if they were together. However, it was small cherry kisses, nothing out of the ordinary. Naruto was from birth not a very patient guy, but for her he could just let her take her time. _

_It was the least he could do after he still talked about Sakura a lot. Who could blame him? Hinata didn't._

_Naruto sighed again, Hinata was a nice girl and he liked her, so where was the problem. He looked past his shoulder and could see the bright moon shine. It was the Byukugan and the Hyuugas. He knew that Hiashi wanted that Hinata should marry someone in the Hyuuga family. It was destined that Hinata should lead the Hyuugas, and therefore no alien genes. _

_Hinata had been sad when she was with him and she had just held his hand. She wasn't the type of girl who cried a lot. It was after that he noticed that Neji had begun to pick her up from the Hokage-tower. Naruto didn't mind – he could change the Hyuuga concerning the cursed seal, but it was a different thing with marriage. _

_Naruto sighed again, and looked back to the road. At least he and she could still be friends._

_The leaves on the trees suddenly rustled and a small girl landed on the road. Her eyes brown and so were her hair – Naruto was convinced that the girl could look like a mini-Tsunade if her hair was tied differently. The girl glared at him and jumped into the trees again, obviously searching for someone else._

"_Naruto-kun?"_

_He turned around and saw a white-eyed girl carefully walk up to him. He smiled kindly. "Hey Hinata. What's up?"_

_She shook her head shyly and smiled. "Nothing, I just wondered why you left so suddenly." Naruto grinned and laid his arm around her shoulder. Out of habit he kissed her cheek, which caused her to blush hard._

"_Don't worry Hinata! I'll come back right now! And this time I am going to beat Jirayia in a drinking contest!"_

_There were no scolding words except a kind smile. "I will cheer you on then."_

_Something was missing._

_-_

Sakura was about to enter the forest when something rushed towards her. With skills that easily outmatched whatever it was, she bent herself backwards and delivered a kick upwards. However, the thing disappeared and landed behind her.

She was, mildly said, pissed and Sakura was not in the mood for asking and answering. "Iaah!" she screamed as she slammed her foot into the ground, making it crack open and make a huge crater about 10 meters in diameter. The ANBU made a gasp and jumped upwards, clearly not expecting that.

Sakura glared at the small node on his mask. "Oto…"

Tohru quickly ran out of the cave. "Sakura-san!?"

"Stay back! I'll handle this! Run into the forest and find Naruto!" Tohru stood paralyzed for a moment before she nodded. Turning around, she ran as quickly as she good, a kunai safely clutched within her hands.

Sakura eyed her as the little girl ran past her, still watching the ANBU. "Be careful…" she muttered and Tohru nodded back.

Sakura readied her fist as more ANBU came into sight. She was surrounded by 9 ninjas, but even in this situation she smirked. She pointed at one of them and slowly motioned. "Come and get me…"

-

Naruto panted hard as he tried desperately to control his anger. His fist curled tightly and uncurled again. Eyes wide and he threw his hitai hard on the ground. "Damnit! God damnit!"

His fist hit the rock before him and splintered into thousand of small pieces. Rock after Rock he demolished it as if they were nothing. He panted hard and collapsed lightly to the ground. Naruto's voice was rough and he felt like crying – it had been a long time since he had cried the last time.

He shook his head and sat down.

"What is wrong with me…?"

Before Naruto could think further, the scent of foreign…and not so foreign ninjas hit him.

-

Temari and Kankuro sat silently at the dinner table, softly cutting out the pieces of cooked meat. Kankuro coughed slightly just to do something and Temari looked up. When he didn't say anything she sighed to herself and spoke.

"So, Gaara isn't going to join us is he?"

Her brother shook his head and slurped down the wine in his glass. "Not as far as I know – he's talking to that leaf-boy right now"

Temari paused eating and stared at small fork in her hand. "Oh"

Kankuro looked upwards and stopped as well. "Is something wrong?"

Temari closed her eyes and rested her head in her hand, softly rubbing her tired eyes. "It is nothing. Of no concern."

Her brother smiled and put the glass down at the table. "Temari, it might be the case that you wish to keep it a secret – but we know very well what sort of relationship you have with the leaf ninja."

Temari frowned and took her own glass in her hand, pouring the red wine into it. She gulped it down and felt the alcohol rush down her throat. She glared at him. "Why do you care? Even if we had a relationship I would not go against the Suna-tradition"

Kankuro waved his hands at the comment and sighed. "Whatever you say." He glared back. "But I must say that my nephew has a certain resemblance."

Temari stopped her actions and stared back at him. Slowly, she looked the other way, a tired look on her face. "I guess Gaara already knows then."

"Temari, I think if you asked nicely he would let you two marry. I wouldn't be a problem, but the thing with the child. We have to discuss that sooner or later." Kankuro grinned. "But I have my own daughter waiting. I always thought you would be the one to get married first and then having babies." Temari snorted and grinned back at him.

"How are you and your wife doing? She hasn't been dinning with us for a while." Kankuro slurped his wine. "She is visiting her parents in the village not far away."

"Haven't you been married for three years now?"

"Yup."

"I am glad that you support me Kankuro."

"You're welcome sister."

-

Sakura stared at the rather molested bodies on the ground. She was surprised how hard she had worked on them. Even holding back, but she had none the less, used far too much strength, more than necessary.

She stood up and glared at the bodies before her. What were Oto-nins doing here anyway? It seemed like they had searched for them. The mud on their shoes were the same as in the area, and the Leafs' too. She narrowed her eyes and cracked her knuckles.

With a swift move of her feet Sakura ran into the forest, in a desperate attempt of finding Tohru and Naruto.

She furrowed her brows. A snarl came out, "Naruto…"

-

Itachi stood before a trademark house with the name Haruno scribbled into the wall. There were sounds of weeping inside the building and he narrowed his eyes. It wasn't that he cared for the family, but it would be slightly more difficult to enter the house if they were still awake.

He didn't care, he needed information. He crawled up the wall, making sure to cast a genjutsu over the area. Itachi couldn't afford to be seen right now. He tucked his strange shirt, bothered by this new kind of clothing he was forced to wear in disguise. Itachi jumped unto the balcony on his left and stared inside the room.

A picture frame of team seven resided peacefully on the desk.

He opened the door and closed it again. The room was dark, but the moon lit it up enough for him to see the objects.

It was transfixing – six years and her smell lingered. As if Sakura had been there always.

Itachi began to search through the different kind of cabins, boxes and closets. Anything that would come to his mind – but he found nothing. He frowned and turned around to stare at the pictures on her desk. There was one of her teacher – one of Kakashi, Naruto and her – team seven – Ino, Chouji and Shikamaru – team 8 – and Neji, Tenten and Lee. He took the one of her teacher.

Itachi opened the small frame on the back and found what he looked for.

A small address for a house by sea cliffs slipped out. Usually people wouldn't be very concerned about the address – most wouldn't have found it anyway.

He heard a man walk up the stairs, his deep voice trying to calm down his sobbing wife. He narrowed his eyes at the door. The wife continued to weep and the husband was rather annoyed.

If Itachi remembered correctly, the mother was a housewife and the husband was a travelling business man. So strange that their daughter turned out to be one of the best female ninjas in the world. He had also researched their background – Sakura was the first ninja to get to chunnin level, or even becoming ninja at all. The last ninja in their family was at the time before Konoha was built.

Itachi suddenly felt very transfixed with the young Sakura's picture and traced a small finger across the edge of her face.

When Sakura's mother opened the door there was no one.

-

"Naruto!" Sakura screamed as she ran into the clearing. He turned his head, surprised to see her dress covered mostly in blood. Had they attacked her too? Before he could say anything, or react to anything she swung to hit him in the face, making him jump back.

"You. Stupid. Idiot! Why did you run away! We were supposed to aid each other! If we don't who knows what could have happened!"

He rubbed his cheek.

"And what about Tohru! Where is she!? Oh god! Don't tell me they have killed her! Oh Naruto! They can't kill – we have to find Tohru Naruto!"

Naruto covered her mouth with a sigh, surprising her too.

"I have already sent out 20 clones – don't worry, I'll find her…"

Sakura managed to hit him this time. "Oh yeah you will! I will not forgive you if you don't!"

"Why don't you just relax!?" he screamed, rather annoyed with the fact that she didn't listen. "I have everything under control! Trust me for once!"

She glared at him and was about to scold him even further when another voice spoke.

"Seriously, I would have thought you two would have communicated better after your little reunion back in Konoha…" both of them turned to see an ANBU Neji take off his mask.

Sakura stopped frowning and smiled gently at him. "It's you! Oh! I thought it was another Oto-nin!"

Naruto stared at her and noticed that she had only received a small wound on her cheek. Sakura had grown really strong. He smiled back at Neji too. "So? Are the rest here too?"

Neji nodded. "Of course, Hokage-sama."

The leafs rustled and out jumped the rest of the troop. Naruto grinned. "Hi, Lee, Neji, Shino, Kiba, Ino and Ten Ten" the six of them gave a nod in reply and sat down.

Ino spoke first. "Don't worry Sakura, all the Oto-ANBU is eliminated. The Nanadaime will think it is your work, not ours." Sakura stared at Ino before crossing her arms. "I have no other choice than believing you"

Naruto sat down and turned around as he watched a clone hold a small Tohru in his arms. Sakura then suddenly rushed over to the small girl and embraced her. Surprising the rest of the group. Lee whispered to Shino. "I thought they didn't like each other much."

Neji frowned. "She is her teacher, you can't travel together for many years without creating some sort of bond. Sakura has been the one raising her – it is rather natural."

Naruto's frown was replaced with a gentle smile as he saw Sakura burry her head in the child's brown locks. It was like a mother to a child. He wondered shortly if he had had a mother if she would have done the same thing.

Shino started the conversation. "Naruto-sama, Sakura-san…" both of them turned their heads.

"I would like to know where you are headed now. It will help us greatly in protecting you – and"

Naruto shook his head. "No Shino – it is alright. I am just escorting Sakura and Tohru-chan to her house in the rocks." Ino frowned. "Well Naruto, just so you know we will go Suna." She looked at Lee and Neji. "Most of us will – and we will make sure to convince the Suna-council to start an attack, so we can get you back again."

Naruto turned quiet.

"We don't like the new Nanadaime – it is very suspicious that he sent out Oto-nins along with Konoha nins. I don't like this – either he has close ties to Oto or…"

Sakura continued. "He is Orochimaru…"

There was silence.

Tohru released Sakura's dress and stepped forward. Neji then moved closer. "I do believe it is so," he said, staring at the group. "I saw Kabuto in the Hokage-room."

"Kabuto!" both Sakura and Naruto exclaimed.

"Yes. I believe it would be safest if you two found some place where you can hide for a while. We will meet with Shikamaru and plan with Suna"

Naruto nodded. "I will escort Sakura and Tohru and meet up with you guys in Suna afterwards. Don't do anything without me. Taking back Konoha will not be easy. But that's our new mission."

The ANBUs nodded, but Sakura just stared at Naruto.

-

_Sakura jolted awake when she thought that she heard someone enter her room. She narrowed her eyes and hid underneath the covers of her bed. Her mom had been so kind to make her bed nicely._

_There was the sound again of heavy breathing. She covered her head this time. Tohru was asleep in the guest room and she couldn't just go around and search the room, she would wake her family._

_Because tomorrow she new that the Tsuchikage would arrive!_

_-_

A/N: a very, very short blab la bla chapter – with nothing interesting at all I could offer. Seriously, everything is just chit –chat and whatever. I am sorry for the delay. Why is it delayed? I had writers block? NOOOOO. Defiantly not – my head has been flooded with ideas and inspiration for the past few days. I have nearly exploded from the pressure.

Simply – I Selun has been suffering from stress. Stomach aches, assignments, party at the school, preparations for the party. I have simply been unable to relax fully – got less the 6 hours of sleep every night, causing me to become hyper active and tired. Unable to start writing I was delayed. (I don't think anyone reads this)

I don't think there is anymore questions to ask for the chapter. Everything sums up itself, end.

Now I would rather do a small promotion for a future fiction, which is in the progress of being made.

"The Pledge"

A "what if" fiction.

Sakura left Konoha when she was twelve, searching for Sasuke who had left Konoha earlier this evening. She betrays Konoha for the sake of Sasuke, and goes with him to Orochimaru. However, everything isn't as flowery as it would seem. The skies are grey in Oto, and Sakura soon discovers these dark things concerning both Orochimaru and Sasuke. She becomes something more valuable for Orochimaru than Sasuke, which surprises many people indeed – and while Sakura wants to go back to Naruto and all of her friends, Sasuke keeps her in place. Orochimaru also begins a certain fascination …-

It sounds crappy at first, and has a darker tone than Rokudaime – seriously, it does. Hope you will read it or not – don't care if you don't care XD

Anyway, all rights to Kishimoto.

Review or Flame me if necessary.

Reviews 94, c2's 4, favs 38, alerts 45. I feel so proud!! so many readers!


	13. Book 1 Chapter 13

Re ho-

Naruto eyed the cottage with a strange look. It wasn't messy or old – it was just very different compared to the buildings in Konoha. The memory of Konoha made him feel uneasy. He needed to be there.

Sakura turned around and gave him a look. "Want to come inside?"

He shook his head. "No, I better get to Suna as soon as possible"

Sakura crossed her hands, and tilted her head to one side, eyeing him harshly. "Naruto – I don't want to think you are stupid, but it is rather irrational to go to Suna now. Konoha knows that the ANBU went to Suna, and they suspect you are there. What about going undercover for a few days?"

Naruto stared at her before he narrowed his eyes at her. "I don't expect that you know how I feel – I need to save my people."

Sakura looked the other way. "Fine be stubborn, but I swear, don't come to me if you die or anything"

"But Naruto, you know very well, that the best chances of getting Konoha back is laying low for a while, and give them a surprise attack – right?"

Naruto nodded and crossed his own arms; Sakura had a small smirk on her lips. "Naruto, its not because I want to be a bother to you – just stating the obvious."

"I know that Sakura …"

Sakura motioned Tohru to enter that house and she turned around. "I have a guest room – you can stay for a few days if you like," she muttered.

Sakura entered the house – and Naruto followed.

-

_Naruto thrusted the rasengan harshly into the body of Sasuke, out of pure reflex. Sakura watched horrified from the ground as Naruto's hand went straight through Sasuke's stomach._

"_Sasuke-kun!" she screamed, but none of them stared at her. They stared at each other instead – Sasuke's eyes wide and so were Naruto's._

_Sasuke snickered with a grunt and whispered "What a surprise…"_

_Naruto quickly removed his hand and pushed Sasuke to the ground, his gaze resting pleadingly at Sakura's. "Sakura you have to heal him! Hurry!"_

_Sakura didn't think twice when he said that._

_-_

Sakura opened the shouji door to a relatively small room with a double bed and showed Naruto inside. "You can sleep here – It is only used when some of my friends from the Rock-village visit."

Naruto nodded and looked around – it needed to be cleaned, but he was only staying for a few days, so what did it matter? "It is a nice house…"

Sakura didn't smile at the comment. "I am going to clean up the rooms – you can explore the area if you want to"

There is a small thing in the air – as if all of this was some sort of weird act. Naruto couldn't help but clench his fist and wonder if he should flee in the night – however, his thoughts stops when a small girl, a mini-Tsunade except with dark brown hair, stands before him.

-

When Naruto had finished the training he told Tohru that he was taking a walk. Tohru who was exhausted from the training understood and let him go.

Naruto hadn't been the type that took walks by himself, but this time he felt like taking one.

The forest was cool and the trees bright green. He could feel the coming of winter. It was strange – in Konoha the wintertime would start in October and end in February. Tsunade had told him that it would be colder when you got farther north.

Naruto took the small path leading to a little clearing into the forest. His eyes blinked when he saw a small altar at the far back. It was a bit of messy, but still a proper altar.

His feet let him to the stone rather quickly and he sat down. It was an altar for the dead – Sakura must have made it. He looked at the small rotten flowers, and frowned. "Dead people should be remembered better"

-

Sakura looked down at the altar before her. It was dark, far too dark.

Wild flowers were spread across the hard rock surface and Sakura softly smiled as she placed her own flowers with the wild ones. She quickly folded her hands and let her forehead touch the stone.

"Please be okay, Sasuke-kun, Tsunade-sama"

Sakura somehow felt very happy knowing that Naruto had taken his time to do something good. A strange warmth spread through her fingers as she softly spoke to herself. "Maybe I should do something to thank him…"

-Two weeks later-

Sakura placed the plates carefully on the table, making a happy tune so that she would relieve the usual tense atmosphere that occupied the morning.

Tohru sat at the table reading through the many scrolls that Sakura had given her. Despite her best efforts she still didn't read Kanji fluently and had to ask for either Naruto's or Sakura's help.

Sakura smiled at her. "How are you doing Tohru-san?" the girl frowned.

"What is this Sakura?" the older woman blinked and walked behind the girl to read the scroll.

"This is water-walking Tohru-san – you shouldn't do that without me being there okay? I will teach you later today"

Sakura looked up the stairs and frowned. "You know where Naruto went?"

Tohru shook her head. "Maybe he is sleeping."

The pink-haired kunoichi frowned. "He usually isn't this late – I am going to check on him."

-

Sakura stopped outside his door when she could hear the small sounds of sobbing. Her angry look was replaced with one of worry, and her hand stopped at the handle.

She took a deep breath and opened the door. The curtains was pulled away letting the clear morning sun travel across the floor.

"Naruto…" she whispered, but the man just lay in the bed, staring into the ceiling. Sakura sighed and took a chair from the wall and placed it beside his bed. With a soft thump she sat down.

"Breakfast is ready." Naruto noted Sakura's crossed arms and cold expression and closed his eyes before sitting up. He wished so much to let the pain out, to tell someone. But Sakura wasn't available. He tensed when he felt his leg touch hers as he swung out of bed and immediately found his head falling on his right hand. Tears streaming freely now.

Sakura uncrossed her arms and let one of them travel to his face to dry away the tears.

However, something stopped her.

All this – was because of her. Naruto wouldn't be crying if she hadn't come back – he would be happy, sitting as the Hokage – just like his dream. Yet, he was doomed to stay with this girl, who had betrayed her nation if not worse, by taking Tohru.

She didn't deserve to comfort him – she was lower than him. She closed her own eyes painfully and let her hand travel back to her. With her left hand, she pulled the curtains back, no one needed to see the grown man cry in despair.

She was not going to have a break down in front of Naruto. It was out of question.

The chair fell to the ground as Sakura fled out of his room.

-

Tohru knocked on the door to Naruto's room, and with some difficulties managed to open the door. "Hey Naruto-san, I have breakfast for you, Sakura-san told me to bring it to you"

Naruto looked up and dried his tears. "Ah…"

The small girl placed it on the small coffee table, before she spoke sadly.

"Sakura-san is crying again. I am used to it now – she always cried when she thought she was alone, when we travelled together. She is so sad all the time…" Tohru brought a hand to her chest. "I don't want Sakura-san to be unhappy"

-

Naruto had never been that fond of rainy weather, and with Tohru having one umbrella, he was forced to share his with Sakura.

They held distance enough so that none of them were too close to each other yet not out in the rain.

Sakura had known that Naruto had been in contact with Shikamaru the last night and frowned. What bothered her wasn't that he would be leaving in a few days. It was because he didn't tell her about it. What should she expect? She didn't tell him either. But that didn't matter then because he didn't know. This time, Sakura knew he was leaving.

Naruto looked to the left and gazed at the strange Rock buildings – their surroundings were rocky, but most houses were covered in a fine layer of trees and flowers. The leaves fell down on the ground softly. For some reason, Sakura didn't feel at ease at this place.

-

"_Sakura, you are a spring person – you bloom in spring, and fall in with the fall." Tsunade waved the bottle of sake into her head as she replaced the usual frown with a grin. "So stop being sad and smile a little eh?"_

_Sakura looked up at her teacher. "What?"_

"_People die so easily Sakura – maybe everything we call faith, isn't faith, just more like choices. That is why we regret so many things" she gulped the sake down._

"_If I had decided to stay home from the mission, Dan might not have died – hehe, so there is no real faith thing. It is just choices…maybe that is why it hurts so much when it happens."_

_Sakura tightened her fist, and had a sad expression. "So…that is why you don't belong to anyone – you belong to the choice of staying with someone. If you fit then that is just good."_

_Tsunade eyed Sakura wearily. _

"_Don't go and waste your life with stupid choices Sakura"_

_-_

"Eh Sakura-san! Can I go search for my friends today!?" Tohru asked out of pure curiosity, Sakura looked down at her sternly. "Tohru-san, I told you not to call me that when we are in town, okay? And no, we need to do some shopping."

Sakura stopped in the middle of her footsteps and stared ahead. Both Tohru and Naruto stopped, even though Naruto only stopped so that she could catch up with the two of them.

Sakura smiled. "You two go ahead. I think there is a carnival in town tonight – why don't you go there, then I'll do the shopping…"

Naruto watched her leave.

-

_With a swift motion of her body she ran into the forest. Shikamaru unable to stop her._

_He frowned and turned to Naruto._

"_You should at least have said something…"_

_Naruto didn't say anything and curled himself together into a ball. His eyes wide-open and dry, but his skin was white and he looked like he had trouble breathing._

-

Sakura watched the shelf with interest. She had never in her whole life expected such a large amounts of ramen in the rock village. Unable to know which one that tasted the best, she snapped the nearest packages and put it into the basket.

She smiled. "Naruto – he is going to feel like he his home now."

-

Sakura heard the door open with a soft click and two pairs of wet feet travelled along the floor. She frowned when come to think of the letter Naruto had received from Shikamaru – they were short, and indicated that he was probably busy.

What disturbed her the most was the fact that Naruto must have asked when he could come to Suna. Shikamaru had replied no so far, but who knew when Naruto would leave.

Sakura felt herself grow sober and slammed the ladle into the ramen.

Tohru stuck her head inside the kitchen. "We are eating now Tohru" Sakura said with a hint of anger in her voice.

The girl nodded and sat down on her chair.

Sakura turned and looked at Naruto who was standing in the hallway. He just shook his head.

"I am not hungry…"

She could see that he had stared at the ramen in her hands, and heard his stomach growl.

"But Naruto-san, I havent eaten dinner with you for two days!" Tohru complained. "And you didn't want to train me either."

Naruto stared at her, and complied tiredly. He sat down on the chair as Sakura slammed the ramen bowl down, causing it to spill some of its contents out on the table.

None of them said a word and Naruto only ate a few spoons before he thanked her for the dinner.

Sakura stood at the sink, clutching the edge hard with her hands as she tried hard to control the growing anger.

-

"I said higher up with your foot Tohru-san!" Sakura yelled as Tohru desperately tried to block a kunai thrown at her.

"You need to have better control on your feet Tohru-san! One more time!"

The girl panted hard and her feet were numb, and so were her hands. All this time training with chakra control and taijutsu always made her tired.

Sakura sighed and made the sign that they should stop. "Fine – enough for today…"

Tohru looked down into the ground, feeling like a failure.

Sakura noticed and sighed again. "It's okay Tohru-san…"

"Sakura-san…?"

"Hmm?"

"…would you…" Tohru looked carefully the other way and chewed on her lip as if trying to find the right words. "…please call me Tohru-chan?"

Sakura blinked and smiled. "Sure…" Tohru then felt Sakura lay a hand in the girl's hair. Tohru knew that Sakura was sad, and she didn't really know why. But none the less it was the first time Sakura had acknowledged the tiny girl.

"You are afterall my little Tohru-chan, aren't you?"

-

Tohru yawned as Sakura carefully tucked the girl into the bed sheets.

"Sakura-san?"

"Hmm?"

"Is Naruto-san mad at me? Has Tohru done anything wrong?"

Sakura stopped tucking her and stared at her, wondering how to approach this topic. She bit down her lip. Maybe she should tell Tohru that Naruto would leave them soon, or maybe she should tell her that everything was going to be alright.

She did neither, when she noticed the necklace around the girl's neck.

"Who gave you that?"

Tohru blinked and rubbed he eyes. "Oh, Naruto-san did – he said that if I wore the all the time, then he would be able to always feel where I am!" the small girl grinned.

Sakura didn't say anything. She narrowed her eyes at the seals tied around it. "The Yondaime-seals…" she whispered.

"Huh?" Tohru said and Sakura quickly shook her head. "Oh! Hehe…well." She pointed at the necklace. "If he gave you that then you can be sure that he isn't mad at you"

The little mini-Tsunade grinned and Sakura smiled. When it was just the two of them it was like a mother and daughter moment.

Sakura felt her heart break.

-

Sakura turned in her bed when the door to her room opened slightly, yet her eyes stayed closed. Naruto gazed down at her and sighed, wondering how things developed the way they did.

He walked over to her bedside and sat down on his knees, watching her with her back turned towards him.

"Hey…Sakura"

He watched to see if she reacted to his words.

Silence.

"I just want to tell you I am leaving now. Don't come after me, I'll be fine on my own." He laughed a little. "Like you would even come for me."

He got a sad expression on his face. "You know – I have so many things I wanted to tell you. Those stories from past six years, Tsunade-sama, Jirayia, Shizune. You would have laughed, I know you would."

Naruto stood up and stopped his speech when she turned again, her face towards him. Naruto closed his pained eyes and sat down again.

"Tsunade-sama, she talked a lot about you. She always looked out of the window, hoping that you would enter the door, all of sudden. She missed you…I missed you too. But now Sakura, things have changed – I am probably not like when I was 12 or 15, and you are not like you were back then…"

He took out a hesitant hand.

"I know what you did these past six years – I waited for you to tell me. I wanted to hear it from you." Naruto brought his hand to her hair and brushed a few pink locks away.

"I really tried to hate you – be angry with you Sakura – to be honest I still am…" he gave himself a small smile. "But you are still one of the best friends I could ever have…haha, funny isn't it?"

Naruto slowly led his hand travel across her cheek to her collarbone, to her shoulder, down her arm, and lastly rubbing her knuckles.

"Even though we try our best and don't succeed. Sometimes we get what we want," he stared at her closed eyes. "But not what we need. Yeah sometimes I just feel so tired but I can't sleep. It is like I am stuck in some sort of reverse…like I am experiencing pain over and over again. Like in my childhood."

Naruto then closed his own eyes and leaned in to kiss her on the – but he stopped himself and pulled back, making his hand brush away the locks again.

Sakura sighed softly in her sleep and brushed Naruto's hand away out of pure reflex.

He took it back and stood up. "Don't come after me…and Sakura…" A long pause.

"I am really sorry for what happened to Sasuke. Things shouldn't have gone that way."

The door closed and Naruto walked down the stairs.

Sakura's eyes sprung open and she sat up in her bed, panting hard.

-

Naruto ran as fast as he could down the path – trees flashing by. He was breathing hard. Not because of the running, but from the extreme emotions wrestling within him. The anger – the regret – the loss.

He stopped when he noticed a woman standing at the seashore, her eyes glaring daggers at him. He sighed and began to walk normally.

Sakura narrowed her eyes and bit down in her lower lip. Naruto's mouth was pressed into a line, chakra beginning to slowly flare in front of him, quiet as always. "So you were awake – even though I threw a sleeping genjutsu on the house"

Sakura felt the urge to punch him. "You are underestimating me again when it comes to genjutsu"

He jumped into the open path. "You've made your point" Naruto starts to walk towards the Sand village.

"Why are you doing this? I have seen the letters from Shikamaru – he tells you that Suna isn't safe yet – and still you refuse to listen and stay here" she looked sadly the other way "I expected you to be different"

Naruto stopped.

"Different from what?"

"I thought you would be a bit more pleased with my efforts – instead of being so goddamn aggressive all the time" Sakura said hissing.

"My people need me, Sakura, but thank you for your efforts" he said with a clipped tone.

Sakura tightened her fist. "Stop talking so highly about yourself – you don't have to leave, but fine! Have it your way! You stupid idiot!"

"Just because you can't see me for who I am, doesn't mean anything any more Sakura," his voice not so calm anymore.

"You're so goddamn selfish, you know that?"

"I am the one who is selfish? Do you even hear yourself?"

"You only think of yourself! I have a child to take care of! I can't be selfish! If I was selfish enough I wouldn't have cared to take care of her!"

She slammed her foot into the ground. "You don't know a thing about responsibility! You just sit in your office with your fine Hokage-hat and sign papers!"

Naruto began to frown even deeper.

"For someone who upped and left all their duties, responsibilities and allegiance to their village, you speak very highly of your and _responsible manner_. And don't bring Tohru into this. Either you took her or died. You didn't choose Tohru, you choose to not die"

Sakura glared at him. "So you are saying that you would rather want me dead? That is very kind of you"

Naruto glanced at her over his shoulder. "I would rather you stop talking shit like you know everything!"

She hissed. "Who says you know everything! You don't know anything at all! You don't know how it is being captured by an organization you can't escape! Because you are not the one sentenced to death in your own village are you!"

Naruto turned around fully. "Don't try to guilt trip me. That particular organization was hunting me down since I was born! Always talking and acting like everything's figured out. I was supposed to be killed at birth! That's just it isn't it Sakura. With you, the world is always how you see it, isn't it?"

He narrowed his eyes. "Everyone else is just too stupid to understand…"

"So now I am the evil one now?" she screamed.

"No. Just the foolish little girl who always runs away"

Sakura snorted. "Running away – I guess that is what you call it. I would say –going away, when you no reason to stay."

Naruto looked the other way and crossed his arms. "You had plenty of reasons to stay. But none of us mattered"

She let her eyes drift to the ground. "But how do you feel if you have an obsessive man hunting you!? He wants you! And not because you can heal anymore! Huh! How would you feel about that?"

"The little girl keeps on speaking. Always about you and what you want. Never about others. Never about…- Never about the village. You dare call me selfish…" he glared at her. "Get out of my way"

Sakura stepped backwards, her eyes widening a bit before they narrowed again. "Get out of _my _way! You call me a little girl? You know what!? You really know what? I think you are the most immature of the two of us right now!"

Naruto stepped forward. "YOU ARE THE ONE WHO NEVER GREW UP!"

Sakura stepped forward to, and quickly unzipped her shirt, revealing scars all over her body. "I grew up!"

The battle aura slowly begins to rise.

"I bet you don't even have that many scars on your body! I tried to save cities for men in six years! Nothing happened! They all died!"

She continued. "I grew up Naruto! I didn't live in a dream city! Give up! There is no Konoha!"

Staring at Naruto vindictively, "WE LOST!"

Naruto felt the kyuubi's aura rise within him – all this anger – he couldn't control it.

"You weak useless piece of – I don't give up! I won't ever give up!" he screamed.

"See! That is why you are going to die what that attitude of yours! And then what? What about all the people that care about you!?" Sakura waved her arms as she said that.

"I die for the people I care about. And none of them are here" he replied coldly.

Sakura tightened her fist even more. "You stupid idiot. It isn't worth dying for anyone!"

"Go home! Go play mommy!" he screamed back.

"They don't give a damn about that! Huh!? Do you think people will care if Tohru died!? Because she wanted to save you?" Sakura couldn't control herself much longer.

"Us adults have jobs we have to do…" he replied as if speaking with an inferior.

"Fine then go!"

"What have you done Sakura? What have you accomplished that gives you the right to be so judgemental?"

Sakura stopped and looked downwards. "I died once…"

-

"_damnit Itachi! Hurry up bring a medic! She is dying!"_

_Sakura stared at the ceiling, feeling the room grow darker and darker._

_-_

"_Darkness"_

_-_

"Died once?" he snickered. "What a joke. Go home. You never accomplished anything. I thought you would do so much Sakura, but you ran – and you keep running"

Sakura pointed her finger at him. "If you ever say I don't know what it feels like when you are dying. I want you to get away from me."

"You didn't have your best friend shove his fist through your heart! Twice!" Naruto screamed back.

"You weren't the one who could have undone all this! This is not placed on you! It is on me!" She brought a hand painfully to her chest.

"See this is what I am talking about! Get OVER yourself!" he screamed back.

Sakura whispered slightly to herself. "I could have saved Sasuke-kun…but I couldn't. He died because I was unable to save …I could have undone all this."

"Grow up!" Naruto screamed.

"Don't yell at me! You don't how it feels!" she screamed back, attention back to the confrontation at hand.

"I am trying to save lives right now, Sakura. I'm not sitting back, giving up and running away. You've got nothing"

"You wouldn't care anyway!" she exclaimed.

He took at step backwards. "How would you know!?"

"Shizune would not let me talk to you when I came to Konoha, because you couldn't face me! What kind of attitude is that!"

"That's not attitude, that's my job Sakura."

"Did you know how I felt! You betrayed me! I thought we were friends! I knew you were alone in there – it was only your chakra!"

Naruto stopped in his steps and turned around. "Wait _I_ betrayed _you_?" he begins to laugh mirthlessly.

"Don't ever say I betrayed you Naruto!"

"You are hilarious Sakura. Hopeless…"

Sakura narrowed her eyes. "Don't damn mock me you idiot"

"…Facts don't matter with you, do they?" he keeps on laughing. "You've got to hand it, this is pretty funny"

She clenches and unclenches her fist uncontrollably at his words.

"And decisions never mattered to you either, Naruto."

-

"_There are no such things as ties Sakura – it all about decisions…"_

_-_

Naruto kept on laughing. "Now I see why no one ever took you seriously. I was too stupid back then to realize that. Haha. Goodbye Sakura, just remember who left and turned their backs to everyone and who stayed and waited"

"You want everybody to surround you – because you are insecure – you don't care about what other people feel – that is why you are mad at me…because I didn't stay with you" Sakura narrowed her eyes, voice dripping venom. "Naruto that is – selfish"

He stopped his laughing. "Is it selfish to…" he wringed his hands. "Is it selfish to want…" he looked up, steel in his eyes.

"You and Sasuke were just the same."

Sakura bit down her lip.

"Everything is about what you wanted Sakura. "No concern about others. If I was selfish for wanting you with me, then yeah, I was wrong. I should never have wanted either one of you in my life!"

Sakura narrowed her eyes and looked the other way. "I don't care…"

Naruto returned the glare fully. "You never did, never will"

She hissed slightly. "Don't you dare judge me. Fine – if I do die, then at least you should know that you are the most annoying person I have ever met!"

Naruto intensified his glare. "And you are the most worthless excuse for kunoichi, I've ever met"

Silence.

"You don't need to tell me that…" her hands tightened even more. "…I already know"

Looking as if she would start to weep but instead flaring up with rage, "So that is why you should get the hell out of here! Damn whatever feeling I some how had for you right back then – because screw that! You are the most damn annoying person I could have ever met! I don't give a damn about Konoha! And I sure as hell don't give a damn about you!" Sakura screamed. Still yelling, "I hate you!"

Naruto stood still for a moment. "You never had any feelings for me! Don't lie, I realized the truth! Everybody knows that you don't give a damn about Konoha! That is why you are a failure! First betraying everyone, then giving up on them when they need you the most!"

Sakura turned and glared at him. "You let Sasuke-kun get away!"

"I didn't let Sasuke do anything!" he screamed back.

"You could have stopped him! I believed in you!"

"He killed me to get away. I don't know how much more you could've wanted Sakura! I died so many times for you!"

Sakura wringed her arms. "I died too!" she pointed at the scar on her right arm. "You attacked me that time! You attacked me yourself! So you damn not tell me that you are the only one risking lives here!"

Naruto stiffens – words get caught in his troat. His hand wandered unconsciously to his heart, feeling it break slightly.

Sakura took a step forward. " I cried so many times for you! And this is the thank you I get!"

Naruto looked downwards. " You've never cried for me. You never thought once for me. If you did, you would've stayed" Raising his head again, "You never think of anyone but yourself!" he screamed.

"You bet I cried because of you!" she screamed back.

"Why!? What did I ever do to you? I was nothing but always there for you! And look what that's gotten me?!"

He waved his arms. "look at me. What has that gotten me!? I've lost everything!"

Before Naruto could say anything else her fist charged him, with all her chakra concentrated to a killer point.

Immediately sensing danger he barely avoided her fist as it came crashing down to the ground. Without thought, an activated the Rasengan appeared in his had, ready to thrust it into her open stomach.

Then time stood still. The cliffside exploded and split off from the earth to fall down the sea. Naruto saw himself reflected in blue light, through Sakura's green emerald eyes. The rasengan still twirling in his hand, a mini tornado of wind and sound, making all other noises disappear.

The rocks behind him continued to crumble into a thousand pieces as they fell into the ocean.

They had been ready to kill each other.

Sakura brought a hand to her mouth and stepped backwards on shaky feet. Her eyes shimmering with tears that she didn't dare to fall.

Naruto stared at her too, his hand still ready to strike her if necessary. But his own eyes were wide and he looked traumatised.

Sakura hiccupped, as she finally was at least five feet away. "I…I am sorry – I didn't mean …"

Naruto deactivated the rasengan and lowered his hand to his side. "No…I guess I deserved that."

"…Don't say that. I shouldn't have run after you in the first place- I…I am really sorry, I didn't mean to…"

Naruto closes his eyes pained.

Sakura continued to speak. "I should have been a bit kinder – I might have expected a bit too much of you…"

"It is okay Sakura – I know you meant it…"

"No I didn't! Naruto you…you…"

He raised his hand, begging her to stop. "Please…don't say anything"

Sakura looked at him sadly. "I am really sorry Naruto. You were right – I am a traitor to the village – I really don't deserve your pity…I…"

Naruto glanced at her. "Sakura…I am sorry too…"

She blinked. "Huh?"

"I shouldn't have said you were worthless, and that you were weak – because to me…"

He tried to smile a bit. "…You are the best kunoichi I know…"

Sakura brought her arm to her side. "…Naruto…"

He looked up. Sakura cracked a little insecure smile back. "Thank you…I guess…there is really a reason why you are the hokage…"

It was his turn to look dumbfounded.

"I don't expect you to forgive me, I understand why you are mad – so…leave if that is what you…feel is right"

"Sakura…do…you want me to stay?"

Sakura sighed and fumbled with her discarded clothing. "I won't say that – you should stay by your own will…I don't want to…force you…"

Naruto. "Sakura…I am sorry that it had to become this."

"Don't be…I started all this"

Both stood silently in the moonlight.

'Naruto, did you mean all those things ba-'

Naruto quickly brushed off her words, "I can stay Sakura ---but you must know something. Don't stop me next time."

Sakura zipped her blouse and sighed. "…of course"

-

Neither said a word the way back to home

-

A/N: aaaaaargh! Oh the flames! The flames – I know that people is going to flame me! Calling me a stupid bitch – or whatever they would like to call me. Why you ask? Because to many people Naruto and Sakura is OOC…

I don't call you people stupid – or anything(I call myself that all the time) but before reviewing or flaming I would like you to take it into consideration how a real couple fight, and what Naruto and Sakura has been through here.

However – me and my beta-reader(or co-worker) has devided the cottage arc into three stages – and then all you can guess is what kind of three stages these are.

SURPRISE too – because I finally managed to figure out the ending of all this! – and you are going to be surprised I can tell you – and I also have the greatest surprise for you in store for another chapter.

I can tell you that I am some sort of Buddhist – which mean I believe rather strongly in the idea of reincarnation – so there is a person reincarnated in this story!

Review or flame me if necessary. If people want an explanation on why I did it like I did – review an answer or PM. (or review my beta-reader causeIambeta – it was his idea afterall….X3)

All rights to kishi!

And to all those who gave their pre-view on this, (H&E) you are some piece of wonderful love meat !


	14. Book 1 Chapter 14

Naruto could hear how softly she sighed when she dried the dirty plates. Three days had passed since that incident, and it seemed that Sakura had started avoiding him lately. Strangely he found himself beginning to stare at her more often than he did before.

He could see that every time she sighed her shoulder slumped downwards, and she has a sad expression on her face. Tohru stood on the chair washing the plates eagerly, but Sakura's mood didn't go by unnoticed.

The tiny girl had spent hours in Naruto's room, complaining about how Sakura had seemed to ignore her too lately.

He didn't like the way things had developed – because there were two things that bothered him, they were never alone, and Sakura always went to bed the same time as Tohru.

Sakura had very beautiful shoulders he had noticed too.

It came one day – completely out of the blue as he watched Sakura take down the laundry. Her shoulder moves upwards with such grace, and the muscles tensed but seemed smooth at the same time.

His trail of thoughts had surprised him mildly said. He couldn't help but get the urge to touch them, and it was a strange sensation – of course he had always thought Sakura had been a pretty girl, with decent ideals – but the thought beautiful had never once crossed his mind like that.

Naruto looked the other way and drank his tea.

Sakura glanced at him out of the corner of her eye and then let her gaze fall back on the dishes. Tohru noticed and turned to look at Naruto too. "Hey – Naruto-san, would you like to train me today, Sakura-san says she is too busy"

He looked up and stared at Sakura's turned back and then back at Tohru, who smiled. He cracked a half smile of his own and muttered into his teacup. "I don't think that should be a problem…"

Sakura then spoke. "Naruto – I will just inform you that I am expecting a guest from Rock soon – don't worry, they do not know who you are – but I will just say that I might be away from home a bit"

Naruto frowned. "You are still working for them…I thought your loyal-"

"He is a friend of mine – I haven't seen him in a long time, and I would like to exchange a few information with him, and that also means what I have been doing"

He placed his cup on the table. "Whatever, as long as he doesn't interfere with what I am do-"

"Don't worry, we will not…"

When Naruto noticed the _we, _he could not help but feel a bit of regret that Sakura would not talk to him. Taking it as a sign that she wanted him to leave the house to train Tohru, he nodded and motioned the girl to come with him.

He failed to notice Sakura's gaze travelling with him as he opened and closed the door, and her fingers that clutched the plate harder than indented to.

-

Tohru blew her hair away as he and Naruto took a break from training. She lay down on the log and stared at the sky. "I think Sakura-san is sad…"

Naruto looked into the sky too. "How come Tohru-chan?"

She was silent for a minute. "She told me that she is scared that you are going to leave without telling her."

Naruto didn't say anything except and "oh" in reply.

Tohru pointed at the sky. "I don't like that Sasuke-kun. Sakura-san always gets so sad when she talks about him, I don't know what he has done her, but I don't like that a man can make her sad."

"Sasuke makes me sad too." Naruto said, and turned his head towards the kitchen window – seeing Sakura placing the dishes back unto the shelves again. She had that sighing look again.

"Why?"

"Because he was my friend – my best friend, and Sakura's friend too, but he died. It hurts when people die."

Tohru glanced at the doll in her hands. "Do you think – if I knew my mom, would I also be sad if she died?"

"I guess you would." He muttered.

His eyes caught Sakura's as she turned her face towards them, and quickly looked the other way.

-

Sakura had her back turned towards him again – Naruto guessed it was natural. This was their first night alone in ten days – and she was making him a cup of tea.

"Hm…Sakura?"

"Yes"

"How come you…know – escape Akatsuki?"

She stopped the movement with her hands and her shoulders tensed, before she relaxed again.

"Why do you ask?"

He shrugged and let his nail dig into the wooden table. "Nothing really"

"Then I don't need to tell you."

Silence.

"Did it hurt – when they tortured you?"

She took a cup from the shelf and poured up the hot water. "I guess it did – I don't remember it so clearly anymore, more like a distant nightmare I dream at night."

She sat the cup before him and placed the tealeaves in it. He stared at her expressionless face, his hand slowly raised to tuck back a pink lock – but she had already walked away, and was rummaging through the closet at the wall, trying to find a towel to dry her hands in.

"So, mm, how do you sleep at night lately?"

"What is with all these questions?" she asked back.

Naruto shrugged and sipped to his tea.

She turned to stare at his blond hair, it was really blond and she shook her head softly.

"You like the tea?"

He blinked and sat the cup down. "Uhm, yeah – you are good at making tea."

She nodded and walked back to the kitchen table.

"You know Sakura – I always liked your hair long."

She began to rub the remaining dishes.

"But I like it short…" she said.

Naruto narrowed his eyes a bit. "That wasn't what I wanted to say." Sakura made a small laugh and took her own cup of tea and sat down on the other side of the table. "You have always been bad with words"

"Sakura."

"Hmm?"

"How did the Akatsuki capture you?"

She groaned softly into the hot tea, and sat the cup down, before she moved her gaze towards the window. "I would more say how I tried to capture them."

Naruto sipped his tea as he watched her green eyes reflect the moonlight, and he needed to keep himself from wanting to stare into those emerald eyes forever. He coughed.

"Oh…"

"I tried to capture Itachi, but he captured me instead – and brought me to their hide-out where they convinced me to take care of Tohru"

Naruto reached out to touch her hand but she pulled it away, signalling that she either didn't want him to touch her or that she wasn't ready. "Don't pity me" even though she had a cool façade her voice shook as she spoke.

Naruto stood up angrily from his seat. "I just don't get it! Why would you go through all that, and confront a man you knew you couldn't kill! Why!? And don't just say that is was for Sasuke – please don't say that…"

Sakura looked into the table with a guilty look, her hands shaking, as she softly brought one of them to her mouth.

He noticed.

"Ah! Sakura! Sorry I didn't mean to – don't cry, hey it is alright!"

"I am not crying!" she yelled, even though the tears could be seen running faster down her cheeks and her shoulders that were shaking.

"Sakura…"

"I damn well know what I did! And no –"she could see him out of the corner of the eye stand beside her. "Don't…I don't want to be pitied! There are people who have been through things that are worse…and-"

Then she was embraced, and all she could see before her was an orange shirt and blond messy hair touching her skin. Her speech was cut short as Naruto tightened his hold around her, whispering softly into her shirt. "You didn't deserve it – you shouldn't have gone…Sakura…you didn't deserve it at all"

She relaxed after a while and rested her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes as her hands found their own way around him.

With a soft sigh she whispered his name.

-

"Oy! Sakura!"

The pink haired girl blinked shortly at the brown-haired ninja standing before her, a silly grin on his face and a letter in his other hand.

"I guess you must have expected me – how did you do in the attack against Konoha?"

Sakura slammed a hand on his mouth and glared at him. "I don't know who you think you are, but I would like you to keep such matters quiet – who knows what wanders these lands and goes unnoticed by our eyes."

The man's eyes sighed and looked downwards before giving her the letter.

"The letter is addressed to a Sakura Hanara, which is you. Guess the Tuschikage must think highly of you for sending such a letter."

She rolled her eyes. "He sends letters like this to every woman in the Rock – why should I be different."

He smirked. "Because you are pretty?"

Both of them turned around when they heard someone come the stairs. With a swift move of her hand she hid the letter within her jacket and glared at Naruto. Who pouted back.

"I thought you were going to train Tohru today" Naruto replied as he stuck his hands into his pockets, the frown clear on her face.

"oh damn!" Sakura cursed as she stroked a hand through her hair. She looked at the two of them before quickly cracking a smile. "you wouldn't mind if I go train her now? You can talk right?"

And then God created silence and big eyes.

-

"how long have you been living here?"

Naruto glared. "3 weeks"

The rocknin stared at him wide-eyed. "3 weeks! What have you been doing – you are not…well…uhm together you know?"

Naruto stared at him wide-eyed before quickly shaking his head. "no way! Sakura and I have never had that kind of relationship".

The nin smirked and rested his head on his hand. "don't mind if I snatch her? Do you?"

The blonds' eyes narrowed dangerously as he gritted his teeth, quickly standing up from his chair he walked into his roomed and slammed the door shut.

-

"Naruto! I told you dinner is ready!" Sakura yelled through the shouji door.

"I am not hungry!" he yelled back.

She frowned and grabbed the handle to open the door, but it was locked. "goddamnit! Open the door! I won't let you sit in here starving."

"I told you I am not hungry! You go eat!"

Sakura was about to kick the door open when she noticed her friend sit at the table where Naruto used to sit. She lowered her leg and sighed. "fine…"

-

"I am going to bed" the rock nin yawned at Sakura's back. He lifted and eyebrow and noticed the plate full of ramen beside her, wondering if she was still hungry.

"okay – " she muttered and continued to wash the dishes.

"shall I help you or so-"

"I am fine Daikon She replied rather coldly and sat a plate on the kitchen table.

He stared at her before shrugging, "whatever you say" he scratched his head as he walked upstairs to Tohru's room, where he was staying. The small girl had been spending most of the evening in the other man's room anyway, and was supposed to sleep with Sakura.

The pink-haired woman stopped her washing and dried her hands, before taking the plate into her hands and walked towards the shouji door.

"hey…can I enter?"

There was a sound of a chair being pushed backwards and the door opened with a soft click of the lock, and a curious looking Naruto stood before her.

She gave a small smile, and saw that Naruto blushed a bit at the interaction, before she showed him the plate of ramen. Tohru looked out from behind him and raised an eyebrow. "hey? Didn't we get anko instead of ramen tonight Sakura-san?"

Ignoring Tohru, she shoved the plate into his hands. "next time come and eat with us – I know you well enough to know that you won't survive a few hours without food"

Naruto rested his gaze on the ramen and gave her a small smile back. "yeah…"

Sakura cracked a grin and took Tohru by the hand. "okay, Tohru-chan – bedtime, because we are going to have a long day ahead of us tomorrow"

The girl frowned but none the less complied, biting Naruto a good night before running up the stairs. Sakura bowed too and was about to walk away when Naruto grabbed her wrist hard.

She looked at him confused.

"Sakura – why?"

Then she gave him a small smile, and took her arm back. "because you are hungry."

-

"_Sakura – what are you answer to this?"_

_She let a slightly shaken hand rest against her mouth, as her eyes frowned deeply at the letter before her. Daikon watched her with determination._

"_this is about the future of the Rocks – we need to get rid of Konoha in order for our success. You know that, and we could use one as you in the battles. This is about our home country."_

_Sakura let her hand rest against the table, as she traced the outline of the letter. "I must say – that Rock is my home-country, and it is a beautiful place, but I see no reason for the destruction of Konoha-"_

"_Are you going against us! This is for our future, the children after us! They will remember us the glories nation in the whole world! They won over us in the last war – we cannot let them humiliate us like that – this is a question about honour!"_

"_don't! damnit! Do not yell at me Daikon! I know very well that this is a very important matter – but there are serious aspects in this – I cannot agree to all of this. Taking the lives of small children or women, even men I cannot-"_

"_Sakura!"_

_She flinched._

"_this is not about lives – I know you are a decent medic, but don't you want the Rock to be an amazing nation. A few lives are nothing."_

_Sakura looked downwards and brought a hand through her hair, her green eyes resting at the name on the letter. She thought that the last time they attacked Konoha they made peace. She must have been wrong._

"_we were so worried that you had been caught Sakura. Who knows what would have happened to you if they decided to put you through trial…"_

_She was living a life full of lies._

"_you have to help us!"_

"_Daikon – I would like to have time thinking about this…"_

"_good – and the tuschikage expects you in the city in a week."_

_-_

"iah! Goddamnit! Higher up with your leg!" Sakura blocked Tohru's leg, who tried to connect with her sculp, and pushed her backwards, making her crash against the earth.

The whole conversation with Daikon had made her mad, not mad in that matter of sense. But they wanted to attack Konoha with Orochimaru in it! They wanted to destroy her home city.

Tohru barely blocked a hit from Sakura and jumped backwards, staring at her teacher shocked, before running towards her clumsily.

He wanted her to aid them in attacking. She understood well enough, because she had been lying, made them believe that she was on their side – and had nothing to do with Konoha.

Sakura just couldn't make herself do it again, she couldn't attack Konoha, but still at the same time it was necessary – it was afterall Orochimaru who was positioned there.

Tohru's kick was blocked again.

But what about Naruto?

Sakura winched at the thought, and let out a small battle cry.

-

The letter to Shikamaru was clutched hardly, but she was careful enough to not destroy it. She didn't need Naruto to know she had seen it.

The words were repeated several times in her head, the haunting images of his back walking down the road. Going away.

_I am expecting to be in Suna a week from when you receive the letter._

She slammed the letter back and ran out of the house.

-

"huh? What?"

"well, we are having a small get together tomorrow night, and I was curious in if you wanted to come – it has been a rather long time since we all have been gathered like this."

Sakura bit down her lip and crossed her arms. "I don't know…"

"come on! It will be fun – you can even bring that uhm – guy you know." Daikon said, trying to cheer her up just a little bit.

She sighed.

-

Naruto looked up from the dinner and stared at Sakura at the other end of the table. Her fist clutching the spoon harder than intented.

"what?" he spoke in disbelief.

"they asked me to come, and that you are welcome – so I was curious if you even wanted to."

He blinked and then frowned, digging the spoon back into the soup and crossed his arms. "I see no reason why I should; you'll be fine on your own won't you"

She hissed back, "I only asked…"

Tohru glance into the soup sadly and sat quietly while eating as soundless as possible.

"if you don't want to I am going there myself – and if you will excuse me I need to get ready to leave." She turned her head to Tohru. "make sure to study hard while I am away? Okay Tohru-chan?"

The small girl nodded and Sakura placed her dish on the kitchen table, before marching upstairs – feeling Naruto's gaze linger on her back. To Tohru it seemed a bit longing.

-

When Sakura came down she blinked quickly, when she saw Naruto waiting at the door, an offended look on his face as he uncrossed his arms.

"are we going or what?" he spoke.

Sakura gave him a small look and a doubting smile as she took the small umbrella in her hand and handed it to him. "it is raining outside."

Tohru watched them from the kitchen door, as Naruto blushed a bit when Sakura playfully teased him about going. However, the way Sakura seemed to have been tense around him lately, made Tohru wonder if Naruto might leave.

He turned to Tohru who hid behind the small wooden frame, and motioned her to take care.

Sakura was already out the door.

-

"oh! Sakura it is you! How wonderful! Oh what a shame you cut your hair, it was prettier when it was long – oh who is that man behind you! wow! When did you catch him? When is the wedding? Huh! Huh! Huh!"

Sakura stood still as she watched her 'friend', continue to stare at Naruto as some sort of God, quickly beginning to talk to him instead of her. He was sending her looks, begging Sakura to help him somehow.

She almost considered that option, when she reminded herself of the letter she had seen the days before. Clutching her fist hard she gave him a fake smile and walked away. Unable to see the confused gaze he gave her.

-

Anzu turned her head offended back to Sakura, who stared sadly at the sake in her hands. She gave her friend a strange stare. "you know what Sakura? I really don't get it! That guy you brought here, all the guys are just standing there – around him. Tsh they should be more focussed on me instead."

Sakura took the bottle instead of the cup and poured it down. Anzu quickly snatched the bottle back. "hey! No need to get mad! I want to get drunk too you know."

Sakura glared at her.

Anzu grinned. "us 'real' rock woman, like you and me Sakura, we want real 'rock' man! Not some sort of new rock fellow. Look at Budou! He is nice man, all the muscles."

Sakura had the feeling that she should've stayed home. As Anzu continued to ramble about her new obsession, Sakura began to feel slightly dizzy and needed to rest her head against the table. Too much alcohol she guessed.

Her green eyes then turned to see Naruto try hardly to prevent a fight. She sighed and felt herself get angry at Naruto for starting a fight again.

-

"ho ho! So you're trying to hit on our Sakura are you? hmmm!" the man named Budou spoke rather teasingly. Naruto glared at him, really wondering what he was doing here.

Daikon smirked and leaned backwards, waving his small fan in his hand. "hehe – I bet that those two are going to get married, what are you saying about that Budou?"

The larger man frowned and showed a small lady into his arms, who punched him slightly in annoyance, before he broke into a healthy laugh.

"well, kiddo – you can't be older than the drinking age can you? what about a drink competition! The one who wins gets Sakura!"

Naruto narrowed his eyes before a wide grin spread on his face. "I don't care about the price, but I am damn well going to show you what I am made of!"

Budou raised an eyebrow before he slammed his hand down on the table, grinning back at Naruto. "well then! How about a small match instead! See who the better rock out of you and me is!"

Naruto's grin widened as he stood up, cracking his knuckles. "finally something to do in this boring place!"

Daikon laughed and poked Naruto's shoulder. "oh! You can't be bored with Sakura-chan over there can you? you seem quite close you two"

Naruto pushed his lips forward in an annoyed pout. "who cares about that. I haven't been challenged in years!"

"do what you want" the dark-haired nin replied and stood up, saying that this was a sight worthy.

The barkeeper yelled over the crowd in an amused tone. "hey Daikon! Remember! Fights are outside – last time you managed to owe me quite a lot of money remember?!"

Daikon waved his hand and motioned Naruto to follow him outside, with Budou trailing behind them.

Anzu laughed and pointed. "look! Your guy is going to get beaten right now by Budou! Wanna take a look, eh Sakura?"

Sakura looked up and cursed when seeing Naruto exit the bar, and without answering Anzu's question she pushed the chair backwards, and fled towards where Naruto were.

Naruto inhaled the evening mist as Budou took his stance, his arms ready to trust into Naruto with its full force. The blond-haired ex-Hokage suddenly felt free; here he had his chance to get out all the frustration he hid within.

All these new feelings he had experienced lately.

How Sakura looked different. The sweet scent she all of sudden possessed, the gentle yet fiery green eyes that could make him madder and calmer at the same time.

"you stupid goddamn idiot!"

They all turned around to see a rather drunk mad Sakura, who with clumsy steps walked down to Naruto and dragged him by the arm down the road. He looked back at the others, who just stared at him dumbfounded.

Naruto knew he could get out of Sakura's grip, but the way her face seemed to express inner torment made him think differently.

"you goddamn stupid idiot! What do you think you are doing! Are you out of your mind!?" she screamed at him, when they had walked for a good ten minutes.

Naruto yanked his arm back. "What are you talking about! This was just a spar"

Sakura wobbled but managed to point her finger at him. "here I am! Hiding you from the rest of the goddamn world, and you are about to blow the cover! What are you thinking – Daikon doesn't stand a chance against you!"

Naruto waved his arms in frustration. "I would have gone easy on him! Why do you always have to be so damn bitchy about things – you were like that when we were gennins too! Always tried to stop me, when I wanted to fight Sasuke!"

"this isn't like then! We are in a very dangerous situation Naruto and-" she stopped her speech when she felt herself get sick. Quickly she covered her mouth and softly muttered. "I am going to get sick"

She turned around and let herself fall down to her knees, beginning to puke into the bushes. Naruto stared at her when she realised she had gotten herself drunk. With a defeated sigh he sat down and brushed away her hair, making sure it didn't get in the way.

His other hand then carefully rested on her back, as he stroked the red blouse. Feeling her shiver slightly, and if he hadn't been mistaken a single sob.

As she slowly stopped puking, he could feel her harsh breath, and let his hand dry away the small tears in her eyes. She groaned and quickly let herself fall against his chest, surprising Naruto greatly as he literally fell back to the ground.

"I hate being sick…" she muttered and dried her eyes herself.

Naruto just stared at her wide-eyed, his heart beating unnaturally fast. His hand touched her shoulder as he shook her slightly. "hey – get up, we need to get home…"

Sakura sat still for a moment before she did as she was told, Naruto's arm around her waist, and her an arm around his neck, as he led her home.

She grinned a little. "when did _we_ come into the picture…"

"I thought I was the only one living there soon, with all those letters you send to Shikamaru. Saying that you are going to leave soon, probably taking Tohru with you too, because why would she stay with me. Eh?"

Naruto readjusted her and continued to walk as if she was saying nothing.

"and here I am too, trying to make you stay. Why do I even want you to stay? God who knows – it would be funny if I actually had managed to fall in love with you. eh Naruto? Me in love with you? that will never happen – because you are the most annoying person in this world"

Naruto tightened his hold as he tried desperately not to say anything back.

She cracked a bitter laugh and stumbled a bit on her feet, Naruto making sure she didn't fall completely.

"we could look rather well together you and I, you know? We are both too stubborn for our own good, trained by sannins and we are just as aggressive…" she looked up at him and grinned. "…just imagine, eh? Small insanely strong babies you and I could produce"

"you are drunk, you don't know what you are talking about" Naruto hissed underneath his breath, clearly getting very annoyed with where the topic was heading.

"but so could me and Sasuke-kun too. We would create a thousand babies, and I would be a living breeding machine, and you would be with Hinata, and you would have small Hyuuga – Uzumaki babies with white and blond eyes." She giggled a bit and nudged Naruto on the shoulder.

He groaned annoyed.

" oooh – look at those pretty flowers! Did you know that I am named after a flower? My mom always said that I looked like a small flower when I was born, and then it all of sudden became winter and I disappeared into a bud. Naruto do you love me?"

He stopped and stared at. "what did you say?" his eyes wide in disbelief, as Sakura smirked at him, before she broke into a fit of giggles. "you know it is really funny with those blue eyes of yours, it is as if I am being reflected through them…I wonder what Tsunade is doing."

Naruto looked down the road to see the lights in the house had been switched off.

"Naruto I just feel like kissing you sometimes."

He then threw her arm away and walked towards the cottage with clenched hands. Sakura fell down on the grass, and barely managed to ease the blow. She looked up angrily. "why are you so mad! You are always so mad! I thought you were happy! But I don't care! All you care about is yourself – and what about me? What if I don't want to stay with Tohru by myself – what if I want to stay with you too?"

"you are drunk Sakura, stop talking nonsense"

Her pout turned into a defeated sad expression, as she brought one of her hands to her face, and dried the tears trailing. "why are you so mean. I am just trying to make you happy – and all you do is throw it back into my face – oh...wait" Naruto turned around at the sound of Sakura leaning her face downwards, into the grass – colouring the grass with her newly produced puke.

She hiccupped softly and dried the vomit away from her mouth, as she cried. "I hate being drunk – the whole feeling." Sakura blinked when she felt a hand on her back, and a nose buried into her hair.

"it is stupid drinking Sakura, you shouldn't drink, it only makes people say stupid things."

She hiccupped and sat up. "you really should've left. I don't get, you are still here, with a girl who clearly dumped you over every guy she might find, and yet you still stay with her." She dried her eyes and avoided Naruto's glare.

He turned and crossed his arms. "you are right, everybody else told me that, and now you do too, then it must be the truth."

"all these years I waited for you and you just come back with Akatsuki hunting, tearing up Konoha – making Orochimaru get the chance to take over-" He began to rant.

Sakura stared into the ground. "yeah…"

"and now I am on the run, and you do is telling me to run off, and on the same time begging me to stay – god damnit Sakura…"

"I am sorry –" she continued, her eyes watering again. "I am so sorry…"

"and you are asking me to kiss you! what did you expect me to! Do it so you could earn some self pleasure…uh…are you crying"

Her face was turned the other way, and her shoulders was shaking, but there was no mistaken when it came to the sound of her sobbing. "I am so evil – I should have died back then in the Akatsuki headquarters – letting the molest me, do whatever they wanted to do with me!"

Naruto's angry face faltered as he watched her bury her face into her hands. He let his hand touch her back, but she brushed it away.

"Sakura…"

"don't Naruto, please leave, you can go to Suna in a matter of days from here, I'll be fine, it is okay."

"Sakura…"

"I am sorry for everything…I didn't mean to ask you silly questions like that – oh the alcohol must be wearing off now…" sobbing.

Naruto sighed and stood up. "let's get you home Sakura" he took her under the arm roughly, and pulled her upwards. She let out a strangled cry and ended up staring into Naruto's eyes.

Sakura blushed all of sudden and looked the other way sharply. "uhm – home that way…" she pointed and began to march off. Naruto shook his head and followed her, noticing the sun was beginning to rise in the distance.

-

When Sakura entered the kitchen she saw the clock read six am, and turned around to look at Naruto, who had already walked over to the kitchen sink and found a small glass on the shelf.

"drink a lot of water after you have puked, helps the stomach – I learned that in Konoha" he spoke.

She sat down defeated and let her head rest against the table. Feeling her head spin. "and some tranquiller too thank you…" she muttered.

Naruto found it with ease and walked over to where she sat, studying her broken form with a sigh. Placing the glass on the table, he went into the bathroom to get her a toothbrush. She wasn't going to bed with puke in her teethes.

When he exited the bathroom he saw an empty glass and a Sakura with her head in her hands. He tightened his hold on the toothpaste and toothbrush, before walking over to her, handing it over.

She looked up and took it without question, carefully brushing it off. As he went to make some tea for himself, he wasn't going to let her sit down here by herself.

When she was finished she stood up, and walked over to the sink, spitting out the paste. He watched her back.

After a moment hanging over the sink, she stood up and brushed her hair away. Naruto turned his gaze back to the tea, and clutched the kitchen table harder than intended.

She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, and let her hand touch the cool table. The silence unbearable, and she chose to sit down on one of the chairs.

Naruto finished the tea and walked over to the half asleep Sakura so she could get to bed. When he was about to poke her on the shoulder, her arms went around his neck, forcing him into a one-sided hug from her.

He stood there frozen, surprised at the many things had just occurred, and he could feel her breath on his throat.

"S…Sakura" he muttered.

She didn't say anything back, and he sat down on the ground defeated. Leaning his head against her shoulder, as she brushed his hair tenderly. "It is okay to cry Naruto – I know you are sad or mad. I just want to be your friend…I didn't mean to be so…stupid"

"stop talking Sakura…please, it isn't helping."

She clutched him tighter and buried her head into his hair. With a hesitant mind she kissed a small spot in his hair, making him stiffen in her hold.

"don't worry – when you get to Suna I won't interfere again. I…"

"does it make you sad that I am leaving?" He asked.

It was her turn to freeze.

"do you really want me to stay here with you, and why should I stay. Saku-" he stopped speaking when she let him go and stared into his eyes.

And he could see it, right there – no lies behind her eyes. Only green eyes reflecting his face.

Her arms hanging loosely around his neck as she closed her eyes. Naruto gulped and felt a small blush haunt his cheeks, before he closed his own eyes.

There was no reason why, and he had no idea how the feeling in his chest came back. He didn't know why Sakura seemed so longing. He had never seen her like that, never, not once – not even when Sasuke was there.

Sakura only knew that her heart was beating faster than before, and when they accidentally kissed each other cheeks instead of their mouth, she didn't feel embarrassed.

She laughed, and she could feel Naruto's chuckle against her skin, when he also slowly began to kiss his way around her skin. Not a single spot left where his lips hadn't been.

When he finally hovered above them, she could feel his panted breathing. Almost as if he was trying to control himself. She tightened her grip and his hands wandered to her waist.

With a soft sigh of her own she let her lips touch his gently, featherlike. He brought her closer, intensifying the tenderness to an almost desperate kiss, but she didn't mind.

Sakura had never in her whole life imagined her heart could beat like that.

-

"_hehe Naruto – is there a girl you love?" Jirayia spoke with a smirk, ruffling the young blushing boy's hair._

_Naruto couldn't let go of the strange feeling within his chest. "uhm – well – there is a girl I like – but Sakura-chan will – maybe she'll – or"_

_Jirayia had the feeling that Naruto didn't only – like._

_-_

Tohru snapped her eyes open when she heard a hit and someone screaming out in agony, soon followed by a "Naruto you idiot!"

-

Naruto rubbed his sore eye as he glared at her angrily. Her own anger disappeared when she saw his face, and needed to put a hand over her mouth to prevent the giggles, which soon developed into a healthy laugh. "don't get too cocky Naruto…"

His glare disappeared and was replaced with a heart-warming smile – making Sakura smile back at him and leaned in for another kiss.

-

A/N: ahahahaahahahahahahahahaahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha…………ahahahahaha!

Oh dear – you know what! I suck at these romantic moments – and when I was writing it I didn't know if I was supposed to laugh or simply have a twisted face of disgust. Tell me what you like – because I am good at strange emotions – not romantic emotions. (did I mention I have only been in a relationship once?)

Bla blab la

Questions!

1: who is the new character introduced?

Anzu(female), Budou(male), Daikon(male) is three rock nins or inhabitans. Who is friends of Sakura's, when she stayed in the rock. She wasn't alone all the time.

They are all named after some sort of Japanese fruit, as far as I know Daikon is Watermelon, he is also the only person we will possibly meet again.

2: what is it with the letter from the tuschikage?

This is a letter saying that they are planning to attack Konoha – but it should be added that it is not quite the case here. It is addressed for Sakura Hanara, who is stationed as a nin in the rock army. If you remember, Sakura worked as a spy for them, and a spy for Konoha ON them. Which means they believe she is a real rock member. This letter will play great importants for the future of this story – especially the NaruSaku part.

3: is Naruto going to leave?

We will see.

4: how many tails can Naruto get before he goes RAUW!? (?? Eh!)

…3

5: do Naruto and Sakura love each other now!?

….no idea, you decide.

NOTE:

When Rokudaime is done – 10-11 chapters to go, I will do the fiction Pledge. More information in the future, I tried to write it, but I can't with Roku taking as much space as it does in my mind.

Review or flame me – I dunno if my beta-reader has corrected anything, because I never received a draft back – only the respond 'good, you need to correct some spelling'

So people, I did my best, and Danish is my prime language. So if you find any mistakes please report them to me!

All rights to kishi.

This chapter is officially named –the-oh-god-forsaken-chapter-that-turned-into-a-very-long-chapter-and-is-longer-than-even-my-usual-double-chapters.

To the NaruSaku: SQUEEAAAL!


	15. Book 1 Chapter 15

Naruto had a hard time sleeping. Not that he wasn't tired, but it was more the fact that beside him lay a very much sleeping pink haired girl, her arms bended against his figure as he held her around her waist.

He hated his situation. Here he was, unable to go anywhere or think rationally, because Sakura softly breathed in the still night.

He could smell the alcohol on her, but she wasn't drunk anymore. He could tell that himself, because she was the one who had forced him upstairs and into his room. He knew she was the dominant type, and she took the initiative all the time.

Naruto sighed and rubbed a finger against his lips. They were numb and skinless, but it had defiantly been worth it.

Sakura had pushed him to the bed and given him what seemed like small cherry kisses, and Naruto had no idea what was going on. His hand wandered where they wanted to go, and she had shrieked a few times because it tickled.

It didn't matter.

After a couple of minutes like that, she told him she was tired and he made himself get up so she could go to her room. Surprisingly she had not done that. Sakura had stubbornly refused to go anywhere except right here, and lay down on the bed, but not without dragging Naruto down with her.

So now he was stuck with a furiously beating heart and a flushed face, as his arms around her loosened due to the tense situation he was in. How in the world could he just take advantages of her like that?

He let her go and without a though in mind, jumped out of the bed. Sakura opened one eye tiredly and sat up, trying to see what was going on. "What are you doing?" she spoke harshly, drying her eyes.

Naruto desperately tried to open the door, but with no lock. Which also made him wonder why the door was locked in the first place? He could hear Sakura's feet place themselves on the carpet and she yawned once more.

"Come back – I was sleeping so well."

"You can go back to sleep, I am making breakfast or something" he spoke, still searching for the key.

Sakura noted that they were both fully dressed, causing her to sigh in relief. Then she stared at the clock and noticed that it was way past midday, causing her to grin a little. "I think it is too late for breakfast – come on! I am tired, I want my pillow…"

Naruto's blush deepened and he felt it necessary to look the other way. Sakura gazed at him tiredly. "Are you embarrassed?" it sounded more like a statement than a question.

Extremely annoyed with the lack of response she stood up and walked over to him. With a pout she grabbed him by the arm and forced him back to the bed.

He didn't know whether to go with her or stand still, so he did nothing. Before he knew what happened he lay on his back, Sakura's head resting on his chest and all of sudden the ceiling was far more interesting than everything else in the room.

His breathing was deeply nervous and it caused Sakura to frown and turn him around, so she could stare at his face. Naruto gulped and turned his face downwards into the pillow. She smiled and nuzzled her face into his chest.

They lay like that for a good half hour, before Sakura realized she was unable to sleep. "Naruto?" she spoke silently, but there was no answer. Yet she knew he was awake, because his heart beat strongly against his ribs, and she could hear every pulse.

She closed her eyes and let her head rest against his chest, and let her hands slowly travel around his back. Naruto didn't mind at first and seemed to relax, letting his own arms hug her back.

She sighed and let her hands slip underneath his shirt, feeling his warm skin underneath her fingers. He froze and felt his head grow even hotter than before.

"Sak…Sakura"

Her hands stroked his back gently; her eyes open as she listened for his heartbeat. She didn't understand.

She was lying here with Naruto of all people – she didn't understand. Thirteen days ago they had been fighting, ready to kill each other. However, after that he began to stare at her during dinner. She had shamefully inhaled the smell on his clothes every time it was time for washing.

It was strange when she felt her heart leap at the sight of him walking out the bathroom. It was strange how they could just freeze and stare at each other.

To her, it might not be so strange – but she was so afraid of something. She nuzzled closer to Naruto and heard him gasp slightly.

All Sakura might fear was that she fell in love with Naruto – and spoiled it all.

Naruto froze when Sakura froze. He could feel how her gaze turned downwards, to the lump pressing against her stomach. He turned his head just a little to see her expression, which turned out to be a huge blush.

Her arms loosened and he quickly hid his face into the pillow. "I am really sorry about that." He muttered.

Sakura brought a hand to her mouth as she stared wide-eyed for a moment, before breaking into a fit of giggles.

Naruto groaned and tried desperately to turn on the other side, away from her. Sakura giggled and grabbed him by the shoulder and pushed him back. Refusing to stare at her he looked into the pillow, feeling her intense gaze bore into his red face.

Her continuing giggles didn't help either.

"I am really sorry about this – I didn't mean to, you were just so close an-" his clumsy speech reminded him that no woman, had ever been this close to him. He groaned again, and buried his face into his hands this time, away from her.

"Narutoooo-" she started, letting the other hand, she weren't covering her mouth with, touch the side of his face. "- you looook so cute"

"Ugh!" he protested and pushed himself up against the wall in a desperate attempt to get away.

Sakura sat up, still giggling, with a pink blush covering her cheeks. Her hand stroked his hair in a comforting way. "hey – it is okay, just mean that you like me"

"You are not helping…" he muttered.

"Naruto" she sighed, the giggles disappearing. Her hand still stroking his golden locks, and when he didn't say anything she laid down and brought her arms around him. "I am not doing this because I am drunk – you know that. Be a bit kind on me…"

He removed one hand to see her smiling face at him. "I just want to enjoy our time together…"

Naruto cracked a small half smile, as she let her left hand touch his red face. He quickly looked downwards and pouted. "I am really sorry about that."

"Hey, I am medic – things like this happen." She said with a grin. "And I am damn sexy you know!" she embraced him fully, forcing his face into her.

"Oh …"

-

Temari stared at Shikamaru confused. "Excuse me?"

"You know – Gaara knows, and the whole of sand knows about the child. They know it is mine –"

Temari crossed her arms. "you want me to name him after your dead sensei?"

Shikamaru sat down, as he felt the child try to chew on his finger. "Yeah – Asuma would be a fitting name for him."

The sand woman sighed and stood up. "you do what you wanna do, I have some business to take care of along with Gaara."

"Temari?"

"What?"

"Thank you."

Temari had this odd feeling in her chest, when she saw Shikamaru sit happily with his son on his knees. Closing the door, she couldn't help but feel betrayed.

-

"_Sakura! You have to join our forces! We need to eliminate Konoha once and for all! Don't you see! With the Rokudaime gone, we can finally get those bastards down!"_

"_Daikon…"_

_-_

"_Sakura-san!"_

"_Sakura-san! Wait for me…!"_

_-_

"_Sakura---" _

"_Sasuke-kun! Don't die!"_

"_I wanted to kill Itachi…"_

"_Sasuke-kun! Naruto help me! He is dying"_

"_There is nothing more in this world I wanted – it was my soul purpose…"_

"_Naruto!"_

"…_Itachi…"_

_-_

"_Don't worry Sakura-chan! You and I are going to get Sasuke-teme back! I promise you that! And then we will all be together once again"_

"_Thank you Naruto!"_

"_Hey – its a promise of a lifetime remember!"_

_-_

"_I just wanted to kill Itachi…"_

"_Naruto! Help me! He is dying!"_

"_Itachi…"_

_-_

"_Sakura…you are weak…a wonder my brother was killed by you"_

_-_

"_You have to help us! Without the Rokudaime Konoha can be beaten easily!"_

_-_

Sakura bolted upright in her bed, panting hard. Her hand went to her face as she curled her feet together.

Her breathing was quick and tears streamed down her face.

Three days has passed since the day she had been drunk. Naruto groaned tiredly and sat up. "hey? What is going on?"

Sakura waved her hand, motioning him to go back to sleep.

"Don't worry, just a nightmare…"

Instead of doing that he wrapped his arms around her form – resting his head against her shoulder. "you are crying…"

"Am I?"

-

"_I wanted to kill Itachi…"_

_-_

"Sakuraaaaa-chan!"

Sakura turned around, putting down the washing clothes, staring at a grinning Naruto.

"I was wondering if you and I should go and pay our respects to Sasuke! It is afterall seven years today…"

She stared at him for a while, before giving him a small shy smile. "sure…why not…"

"Oh! Right – remember, Sasuke doesn't like daffodils – he prefer wild flowers…"

He nodded and motioned her to come with him, when he noticed the pile of clothes. "don't worry, I'll help you when we get back" he said.

He was rather surprised when she took him by the hand.

-

Naruto put down his flowers on the tombstone, Sakura still holding tightly unto his hand. The rough surface of the stone felt gentle compared to the feelings tumbling inside of him this moment.

He felt Sakura's grip tighten. "Snow…" she muttered. Naruto looked up and saw to his surprise snow.

"but, it is only November?" he asked.

"Yeah – but usually snow comes earlier the farther north you are…" Sakura said.

They let go of each others hands and looked towards the sky. "We don't see snow that often in Konoha – it must be nice to know it comes every year…"

"Maybe…"

Naruto tilted his head upwards to stare at her.

-

Sakura looked up from the dishes as she stood in the kitchen. The sun was going down and Tohru and Naruto was playing happily in the snow. A small smile escaped her lips as she saw Naruto get hit by a snowball.

Her hands loosened on the plate. Naruto turned his head so he could see if Sakura was there. Strangely, his grin disappeared and was replaced with a grateful smile and a blush. Tohru stared at him confused and then looked the same way as him.

When seeing Sakura in the window she waved and laughed.

The plate slipped from Sakura's hands and landed on the floor with a loud crash. Cursing, she bent down to pick up the pieces. "Damnit – stupid plate."

The front door opened and a soaked Naruto stepped in to stare at her worriedly. "Sakura?"

She waved with her hand, telling him that she was alright. "It is okay, the plate just slipped…"

He took off his shoes and walked over to her, bending down so he could help her pick up the broken pieces. "You have been rather clumsily lately" he said softly with a smile. "Kindda strange, because you always seemed so perfect…"

She didn't say anything, instead she placed her pieces in the trashcan and stood up, ready to wash the other dishes.

Naruto then embraced her from behind friendly, resting his head in the crook of her neck. "Are you alright?"

She didn't move her hands and stared at the warm water full of dirt. "I am fine"

Tightening his hold he let his eyes rest on her hands. Taking his right hand he touched her knuckles lightly, making her tense in his embrace. He sensed her discomfort and stepped away. Naruto went back into the hallway, finding his shoes.

Sakura stared at the now bloody water. She must have cut herself when she picked up the pieces. However, when staring at it she couldn't help but see all the faces of Konoha screaming at her. Why didn't she tell Naruto? She could have saved all of them.

-

_Sasuke-kun._

_-_

Quickly she turned around. "Naruto?!"

But he was already out of the door.

-

Sakura poked Naruto's nose in a bored way as he tried desperately to focus on the book he was reading. "Geez? When did you begin to read Naruto?"

He didn't say anything and groaned because she continued to disturb him. "Hey Naruto…"

"What? I am trying to figure out how to fix the roof – it is pretty damaged after all"

"You are 24 now…"

He looked up and rested his head on his hand. "And?"

Sakura smiled gently. "I forgot to say happy birthday"

"And?"

She leaned in and pecked him softly on the cheek, causing him to blush a light pink. "Happy birthday Uzumaki Naruto."

-

Naruto never liked going into the village, afraid that people might recognize him. Even though most people thought hokage Uzumaki was dead, he was still afraid. Anyway, so instead of dragging Naruto with her downtown, Sakura dragged him down to the beach.

It was November and the snow was falling down gently at the two of them. Sakura and Naruto sat together on the bench, watching Tohru try to get her chakra control right by walking on the water.

Sakura smiled and rested against the bench back. "she is doing good progress…"

Naruto nodded, his hands folded in his lap, as he stared at the wild waves. Sakura's smile widened. "Hey! Keep up the good work Tohru-chan!"

The young girl stopped, and turned around, staring at her teacher terrified – obviously not used to encouraging words from her. Seeing that Sakura meant it, Tohru's expression turned into something sunny and bright, her eyes shimmering. "Yes Sakura-san!"

Naruto let his gaze drift to her, and stared. Sakura just continued to smile proudly until Naruto's cool hand brushed against her neck, grabbing a piece of pink hair.

Confused by his actions she turned her head, to see a very serious expression marking the usually relaxed features.

"Naruto?"

"You don't like being touched do you?" he asked, his eyes focussing on her short hair.

"Uhm…what?" she said, getting even more confused.

"You don't like when I touch you like this. Out of impulse. You tense, freeze and try to get away. Like now: when I touched you, you scooted a bit farther away from me." His gaze turned to her face, the seriousness never leaving. "Are you afraid of me?"

Sakura cracked him a small fake grin. "What are you talking about? Why should I be afraid of you?"

He didn't say anything and just stared at her.

"Stop freaking me out like this Naruto…" she silently begged him. "I am not afraid of you" taking his hand away from her neck, she let it travel to her cheek, where she cupped it tenderly. "I couldn't be afraid of you – It is just an old habit of mine…"

-

"_Cooperate with us…Sakura-san" Itachi spoke._

"_No…"_

_Sakura felt his fist collide with her head._

_-_

Naruto's gaze softened and he sighed. "Okay…"

Sakura felt her head grow hot and quickly looked the other way, watching as Tohru seemed to do much better this time.

Then she felt Naruto near her face, his other hand holding her shoulder tenderly. She turned her gaze to see him stare at her longingly, feeling her heart skip a beat. "Naruto" she whispered, as his face came nearer hers.

Closing her eyes she let him kiss on the cheek.

"Eh!? What are you doing?" Tohru asked all of sudden – making both of them snap their eyes open and tense. Naruto gulped and turned his head to see Tohru stare at them with a proud smile.

"You aren't kissing are you?" she snickered. "Because if you do, then you have to promise to give me a little brother."

Sakura blushed. "Tohru!"

Naruto then quickly grinned and took Sakura into his embrace. "Oh! Don't worry Tohru – you are going to get a thousand brothers and sisters!"

The little dark haired girl laughed and clapped. "Yay!"

Sakura could feel Naruto's heartbeat so strongly.

Tohru had never felt that glad.

-

"_Sakura – you have to join the forces! We need to crush Konoha! Don't you understand – we can't let them get away with what they did during the war…"_

_Sakura stared at him numbly, her fingers cold. "I…"_

_-_

Naruto watched as Sakura stood before him, her hands shaking as if she was trying to figure out something. Licking her lips she stared at him scared. "N…Naruto – I…haven't been completely honest with you." she folded her hands.

"About my feelings – you must have gotten the impression that I haven't liked you so much – because I haven't told you. Don't think like that! It is not like it at all…"

Naruto's face all of sudden became very red, and he needed to sit down on his bed. "Wha…what are you trying to …say?"

Sakura gulped and clutched her hands together. She needed to tell Naruto about the letter – she couldn't live knowing that Konoha was in danger. However, as she stood there a strange feeling developed in her body.

What if Naruto died because he went to Konoha? What if she, by telling Naruto this, would lose him forever, either because she had been holding the information from him or because he died?

"H…hey it is okay Sakura" he muttered, rubbing his neck nervously.

"I – I..:" Sakura stared clumsily.

"I love you too Sakura."

She went numb.

"I know it is hard for you to say it – it is hard for me too. I have no idea how things turned into this, but I just know that – Sakura…" staring at her, his blush slowly disappeared. "I love you so much."

Sakura didn't register what happened when his arms went around her, pulling her into a full hearted embrace. "I love you so much…I can't explain it. I think it is just you Sakura…you are so beautiful. Oh …I can't even say this, it sounds so cliché like."

After a few minutes Sakura buried her head into his neck, clutching him tightly.

"Sakura, you and I! The two of us, we are going to get Konoha back …just the two of us." To Sakura he was so gentle.

Knowing she couldn't impossibly tell him, not with the risk of losing him forever – she just couldn't let it happen.

Damn Konoha for once – Naruto was hers.

-

"_Love is foolish" Tsunade said, staring at Sakura. "I couldn't imagine myself care for Jirayia at all – but …now…I can't get him out of my head…I hate love, it makes you do stupid things."_

_She glared at the pink-haired girl. "Don't ever fall in love!"_

_-_

Questions:

1: why did Temari feel betrayed?

Temari felt betrayed because Shikamaru continues to live in the past – that he wants to name the child Asuma, and the second reason why, is that the child seem more fond of Shikamaru. Now, the won't seem like a problem, if Temari didn't care about Shikamaru. She cares about Shikamaru, but not enough to beg Gaara to marry him – let's see what the future might bring for the two of them.

2: how com Naruto and Sakura suddenly became so close?

Now – that is a hard one. However, Naruto and Sakura have been travelling together for what I would expect as two – three months. This means that they have had a lot of time to adapt to each other, get used to have the other around.

Now – Naruto and Sakura has been having a hard time around each other – fights etc, you know that, but suddenly, their relationship takes an unexpected turn of events, with the kiss in the kitchen. This particular situation makes the usual hard and negative feelings disappear, because they experienced something positive. This positive feeling makes them both insecure about each other, but at the same time, in order to have as much positive emotion out of this, they start what we other will call a couple. However, they won't describe themselves as a couple yet – they want a positive way of life, and therefore they test each other, and their limits.

Now – it might seem very strange to you, but this positive feeling they received has given them the opportunity to become friends once more. When becoming friends they get the chance to develop their relationship – which they clearly are doing right now, as you can see.

(one looong answer)

3: why did Sakura choose not to tell Naruto about the letter?

It is sorta strange isn't it? Sakura having the letter from the Tsuchikage, holding valuable information, and she has the power to stop the rocks from attacking. Why didn't she stop it?

Simple, Sakura is a selfish woman. However, don't misunderstand her motives, she desperately wants to help Naruto, and she was about to tell him. What made her stop?

Naruto proclaimed loudly that he once again managed to fall in love with Sakura. Sakura, who is rather insecure of her feelings, suddenly realises that Naruto might die because of this. If they just stayed together like this, just the three of them together, then he wouldn't die – and Sakura and Naruto would live happily ever after.

So the reason why is simple human faults, and in Sakura's case her selfishness.

She has been alone for a long time, what would she do if she became alone again?

4: how many months have they been in the cottage?

2 months – and they spend about 3 months in Konoha – so this story has been going on for five months. Here is a small timeline.

10-11 years ago, Tohru was born  
7 years ago, Sasuke died.  
7 years ago plus a few months, Sakura left  
2 years ago, Tsunade died and Naruto became Hokage.  
Naruto's and Sakura current age is 24.

Anyway, hope you enjoyed the chapter – I think I am doing something wrong, but that is my personal belief.

c2's: 5 fav: 47 alerts: 57 X3

Review or flame me if necessary.

Anyway! Advertisment:

As you probably heard me mention before – I am working on a story called Pledge, with my beta-reader, causeIambeta. We are currently trying to figure out how to write it, and it seems so far that it there will be done – Naruto chapters and Sakura chapters. Preview or light summary will be posted in the next Roku chapter.(I am so cruel for doing this)

All rights to kishi.


	16. Book 1 Chapter 16

Sakura awoke when she felt Naruto tighten his hold on her, and begin to softly kiss the spots in her neck that weren't covered by her pink hair. He moaned tiredly, his eyes closed.

She lay there for a few minutes. Feeling the guilt on her chest rise, she sat up and found her discarded pants. Turning her head she let her gaze drift on Naruto's slowly opening eyes, as his source of warmth had disappeared.

Sakura rubbed her temple and bit down her lip, crossing her legs. She had been lucky that Naruto had been too tired to continue what they had started last night. However, she also had a feeling that Naruto had felt her discomfort, because he had just smiled and put on his shirt again.

Holding a hand across her heart, she walked out into the kitchen, unaware of Naruto's confused gaze.

-

Itachi stared through trees, with Kisame waiting impatiently behind him. "when are we going to attack?" he groaned, Itachi didn't say anything and seemed transfixed on Sakura's movements as she hung up the wet clothes on the rag. Tohru helped her, smiling brightly at Sakura she laughed. Kisame snickered.

"How amusing? She seems to have created a motherly bond with the child"

Itachi didn't even open his mouth.

"Hey? You there?"

"Kisame – you get rid of Tohru-chan and Naruto-kun" his head turned towards him. "I am taking care of Sakura-san."

Kisame sat there for a while before nodding. "You could just have said you wanted her for yourself."

Itachi flicked his finger into the air, a sign that Kisame should be quiet. Down from the cottage roof, a very messy Naruto came– who you might not expect to be a hokage, if you didn't already know. He grinned and ran towards Sakura, and all she did was to continue hanging up the washing clothes.

She made a slight grunt in surprise when Naruto embraced her from behind, and she was about to scold him, when Tohru laughed at them. Itachi could clearly see something was troubling the pink-haired girl. However, she had as always, even when she was captured by Akatsuki, mastered a calm face.

Naruto continued to nuzzle his face into her neck, making Itachi clench his own fist even harder than before. Sakura showed Naruto away and began to scold him like she had intented – she was after all not the type who liked showing affection in public.

Kisame turned his head to Itachi to see if it was time to go, but what met him was quite surprising. The killer instinct was small, but it was there – something Itachi had never done before in his presence. His eyebrows were pressed downwards into a fine frown, while his teeth were bared just a little bit. Itachi wanted to kill the Rokudaime…Kisame could just feel it within his bones.

-

Sakura pointed her finger towards Naruto, a grim expression on her face – yet, the grin on his face didn't disappear. "Naruto! Don't hug me like – or I'll end up killing you!"

Naruto let his hands travel to the back of his head, still having a smile covering a large amount of his face. "Well – Sakura-chan, why don't we do something together you and I? You have been so distant lately. Why don't we just sit on the beach today – eh. Eh!?"

Sakura stood silently for a while, her face having no expression, and then she sighed. "I have no time…"

Naruto embraced her from behind. The years they had been separated proved that Naruto had not only grown in maturity, but also in height. His breath wandered across her throat; making Sakura tense and shake slightly in either discomfort or pleasure. Naruto tightened his hold, inhaling her almost intoxicating smell. "You look nice today…" he muttered.

Sakura did neither frown or blush – but he could feel her shake. "Naruto – release me or I'll kill you…"

Naruto pouted and still held her. "Aaaw…why?"

"Or I'll not give you ramen tonight"

He released her in an instant, throwing his arms into the air in defeat. "Okay okay – I give up, then I'll just play with Tohru or something"

Tohru gave a small shriek and tucked unto Naruto's pants.

-

Temari walked through the hallways with a determined face, her feet slamming against the sand floor, making people without a doubt move away with a single salute.

The sand woman was obviously not in the mood to greet them back, and just marched off. The sounds of running people came after her, screaming for her to stop – yet she continued. "The Kazekage-sama is in a meeting"

Not caring about them, she slammed the door up, seeing how the council members all jumped in surprise brought a small smirk to her face. "Gaara! I need to talk to you…now!" the Kazekage raised an eyebrow, and Shikamaru twisted slightly in his seat. Perhaps his thoughts about Temari being a scary woman were right after all.

Gaara stood up, the council murmuring in low voices. Temari turned to Shikamaru, and he felt that professional look at him again. "Nara-kun, you too."

Gaara opened the door to his office next door, allowing both Temari and Shikamaru to enter. He sat down behind his desk, folding his hands – allowing his sister to talk.

Temari took out a scroll, and began to read out loud "I Hyuuga Neji will hereby announce the arrival of fleeing citizens from Konoha and the fire country. The heir to the Hyuuga throne, Hinata Hyuuga. The heirs of Inuzaka Clan, Hana, and Kiba Inuzaka, Shino Aburame will arrive to aid the Sand in the future attack on Konoha. Hatake Kakashi, Yamato, Yamanka Ino, Akamichi Chouji will be one of those arriving – we look forward to our companionship. – Shikamaru, don't mess with that sister of Gaara's over there."

Shikamaru buried his head into his hands, while Gaara stared at Temari before speaking himself. "Make all the necessary features ready for their arrival – set up the large war tents. Also…prepare for the arrival of the Rokudaime"

Gaara turned his head to Shikamaru. "That means you too."

Both Temari and Shikamaru nodded and walked out the door.

-

The people ran down the stairs, hurrying as fast as they could, so they could greet the people from Konoha. The maids were preparing beds, tents, everything they could get – who knew how many people there would arrive. Even amongst those people there were those of 'royal' blood, like the Hyuuga heir.

Temari was eagerly watching over the many people, who desperately tried to reach the schedule. This was one of the good things about sand people. People living in the sand were devoted people – they could question the leader if necessary, but they would without a doubt not complain in a situation like this. They were raised that way. Might be one of the things Shikamaru was so fascinated about here in the sand – and about Temari.

He was in another area, making sure that all the political aspects of this case was secure – of course Konoha was their ally, but would they be their ally if they had Orochimaru as a leader? Maybe they would take them in because of generosity, or because they trusted the Rokudaime.

She turned her gaze to the Kazekage building, and silently wondered when Naruto would come…

-

The office was dark, and the rain ran down the square windows. The building was solid rock, and it seemed to have been in use for many years. A lone figure sat behind a desk, his hand folded in a calm manner. Usually his face would be in a true grin, but this time – it turned out to be a dark frown.

"What?" he muttered.

The dark haired nin stood proudly before his kage; the tuschikage was after all a proud man, who did not tolerate that people disobeyed him.

"Hanara Sakura is in reality Haruno Sakura from the leaf – she has been spying under us by the late Tsunade-sama I would believe. May her soul rest in peace."

The tuschikage leaned back into his seat. "Is she still in the rock?"

The man bowed. The Rokudaime let his head bend backwards, staring at the dark ceiling. "She has saved my life back then – perhaps to gain a future advantages by letting me be in her debt"

The room was quiet.

"I believe – you should be good enough to handle the assignment, am I right." He blinked. "Daikon?"

Daikon saluted, even with a bitter taste in his mouth. "How about…the man following her?"

The Tsuchikage's eyes widened "Was he blond? Did he have scars down his cheeks!?"

Daikon narrowed his eyes. "Yes…Tsuchikage-sama."

"Damnit! Alert all the ninjas! The Hokage Rokudaime is in the Rock! We need to rid of him right away – take every move possible! Now!"

-

Naruto turned his head abruptly, and threw Tohru to the ground; making her cry out in pain. "Naruto-san!?" He snarled, and laid down himself. "Keep quiet, and hide in the trees – mask your chakra, or something like that-!"

Tohru stared at him confused, until she heard Sakura high scream from not so far away. Starting to stand up she saw his glare. "Go into the woods! I'll get Sakura!" the girl bit in her lip, and quickly rose to her feet – running to the forest line by the Cliffside.

Naruto found Sakura standing dumbfounded. Her eyes were wide, focussing on the two people standing on separate branches. He quickly took her by the arm and pushed her behind him, ready to defend her. However, he found her clutching his shirt tightly. Her hands seemed angry, while her eyes were frightened.

Naruto cursed and glared at Itachi and Kisame, who stood proudly, staring down at them. Naruto could feel Itachi stare down at him with killer intent – making the blond-haired man shake slightly. Something he hasn't done in years. He took Sakura around her waist, and quickly jumped out of the way. Sakura landing perfectly fine on her own, had to catch him.

A fire jutsu marked the area they had been standing in, and they wouldn't have survived if they didn't move. She looked down at Naruto with a sharp look. "Where's Tohru!?"

Naruto winced a bit and sat up, doing a battle stance. "Don't worry, she's safe." His face turned to her for a second. "You should worry more about yourself – this is Akatsuki members afterall."

Sakura frowned and noted to herself to kill Naruto when this was all over. She cracked her knuckles. "I take Itachi – you take Kisame."

Naruto gave her a side glance and stared at Kisame. "Fine – Sakura, don't get hurt…" with those words, they jumped straight ahead on their targets. Itachi stood still, while Kisame readied his sword.

The last Uchiha lifted his arm, and kicked Sakura in the stomach while grabbing her hands. As he did so, the Sakura turned into a small log – and he could feel her right hand smash into his back. Not like a punch, but more like a flat hand to get him away, to have a greater area to fight in.

She landed on a branch above him, her fingers quickly doing a few seals. She waited for the dust to clear, carefully trying to see where he was – or even feel.

"_Don't be so foolish; believing you can defeat me…"_

Sakura jumped around and found herself staring into the eyes of mangekyo sharingan…

_Quickly she pushed herself away from him – watching as he stared at her with a bored expression. Sakura hissed. "Why! Why do you continue to do this to me!? You even did it in the Akatsuki headquarters! Do you really believe that I will follow you?!"_

"…"

_She readied her fist and was about to slam it into the ground, when it turned into water – making her sink dangerously low in the red water. Sakura needed to assure herself that she shouldn't panic – all this was an illusion. Itachi took a few steps forward, standing just before her –his voice monotone as always._

"_Haruno Sakura. You are weak…"_

_She flinched in the water, trying to get away from the man before her. He sat down; his eyes wandered across her face, as he took her by the shirt and brought her out of the water. He held her with a stern hand, as she tried to reach the ground. However, he held her too high. She spit him in the face. Itachi didn't react at all._

"_Yet you are strong."_

_Sakura felt her blood run cold, and her eyes widened again. She desperately tried to kick him, but every time she did, he never reacted. "Let me down! Let me down!"_

"_I have a proposal for you"_

_She wanted to block her ears, but even when she did, his voice echoed inside her head._

"_I will forever give you protection against potential dangers, however, that means you _must _provide me with at least three heirs."_

_She choked on her own spit, and coughed a bit, before whispering harshly. "Why?"_

_Itachi let a small bit of his mouth turn into a light smirk. Closing his eyes as if mocking her. "Because you're currently are one of the strongest female ninjas in this world, and the youngest too…I do not need a woman who is futile. I have to have a strong woman to produce strong heirs, isn't that right, Haruno Sakura?"_

"_You are sick!" Sakura screamed. "I'll never give in to you! I hate you! You are the reason everything has fallen apart!" she reached out for his neck, managing to touch the skin. "You _killed _Sasuke-kun! It was your fault! If you haven't _killed _your family, we would be happy! We would all be happy! _I HATE YOU!"

_She received an amused glance from him, and saw his mouth turn downwards – into his usual frown. "So you are saying 'no'?"_

"_Stop being so damn cocky! What did you expect!? Let me go!"_

"_You do not understand do you – foolish girl." Sakura froze and stared into the spinning sharingan wheels. "You have no choice – you will not have the opportunity to refuse."_

_She narrowed her eyes, obviously loosing her patience. "You stupid…"_

Before she could say anything she fell to the ground, barely avoiding a branch on her way down. Her body was numb as if being poisoned and she managed to grab the branch. She hit her foot unto the main bough of the tree, and jumped into the eye – landing above where Itachi had been.

She was panting hard, as if she had been exercising for several hours.

Itachi was nowhere to be seen, and Sakura desperately tried to figure out where he had gone to. She narrowed her eyes, and tried to listen for his footsteps. However, she knew it was impossible. He was so silent that it had scared her.

Naruto's chakra could be felt clearly, mixing perfectly with the Kyuubi's. She stood up, not caring about Itachi. If Naruto lost control over the Kyuubi then it would be fatal – for everyone. She needed to help him.

-

Naruto hissed and jumped away from Kisame's sword – it was hard to suppress his chakra, especially when the kyuubi had gotten excited by the fight. He jumped over the shark man, and hit his sword with his stick. It was a small stick he had broken of from a tree – it had proven valuable in holding the souba away.

He bends down, and swung his feet around, making the man jump into the air. Naruto then shot his feet upwards, kicking Kisame hard on the leg – making him trip. Naruto winced when the Kyuubi once again tried to come out, and he needed to jump backwards. He cursed, and felt how their chakras were intermixing almost out of his control.

Naruto's eyes widened when the sword came down on him with insane speed. Pushing himself away he barely avoided the destroying force. Jumping unto his feet he threw a kunai at him, knowing that it wouldn't hurt him at all. Kisame smirked and raised his sword again – and Naruto had to hiss because of the Kyuubi's chakra began to flare even more. This was becoming dangerous.

He could end this battle quickly with one single jutsu. However, if he did – the whole Cliffside would simply be destroyed – and that meant Sakura and Tohru could die too. Sakura most likely would not – she would be able to sense the jutsu a mile ahead, and manage to escape. Tohru though was a different case.

The sword hit the ground beside him, and Naruto kicked Kisame in the head – making the shark man fly backwards, into the house. A grin came to the yellow haired man, and he brushed his cheek. He was panting hard and he too was actually excited about this fight. The blue man stood up, a smirk on his face too. Just as Naruto was about to charge, Itachi was in front of him – a kunai in his hand. "You are a hindrance Naruto-kun, please die."

Naruto, never sensing the speed at all, knew he couldn't avoid it. Itachi then suddenly jerked backwards, and there stood a furious Sakura. "How dare you!"

Her fist was tight, meaning that she was ready to punch the living guts out of the Uchiha. The Rokudaime took her by the arm and jerked her backwards. "Damnit Sakura! What are you doing here! Weren't you supposed to take care of Itachi?" She didn't answer, and he could feel how tense her muscles were – her face drawn into anger.

Naruto was silent for a while, before pulling her behind him. "Don't worry Sakura – I am going to protect you." however, even with him still holding her arm, she sprung forward, taking him with her. "Listen to me for once!" he yelled – seeing how Kisame seemed amused, and Itachi had a deeper frown than usual. She turned around and glared at him.

"Let me go now Naruto! This is my fight! I have managed to escape these guys for three years! Taken out Sasori and Zetsu on my own – don't you dare tell me you are going to protect me!"

"I am the Rokudaime! Do you believe I can't defeat them on my own!?"

Sakura stopped, and stared at him wide-eyed, her eyes drifting to the village. Before he could say anything, she dragged him off to the cliffside. Naruto was dumbfounded and pulled her back. "What!? What are you doing?"

"Screw Akatsuki! We have the rock country on our back now! We need to get out of here!"

Itachi stared at her back, and then turned to Kisame. "We have to retreat for now – we will return when it is a bit more peaceful to fight."

Naruto then took her around the waist, and lifted her up, over his shoulder. "Wait! Naruto what are you doing!?"

His feet slammed against the snow while he spoke with a harsh voice. "I have just enough chakra to teleport the three of us far enough – to get a bit away from here." The trees were covered in the white ice, seeming like an almost too innocent place to fight. Tohru sensing his chakra, jumped out of the bushes and ran to him.

"You will have to heal me Sakura!" Naruto yelled while doing handseals.

She didn't reply at first, and stared as his back with a guilty look. "Right!" Both Tohru and Sakura grabbed on to Naruto and they disappeared into a pile of smoke.

-

Shikamaru looked up at Temari – who stood with crossed arms, a frown on her face. "Finally, I can talk with you alone…" she muttered. He had a strange look on his face, like he was starting to choke of something, and his cheeks gained a slight pink. "You wanted…talk to me?"

Temari's eyes shone with the intent to kill, and her mouth curled up into an evil smirk. "Now, you tell me what you told the people in Konoha – or I'll make you suffer."

Shikamaru mumbled underneath his breath and rubbed his temple. "I didn't say anything much – but half of Konoha knew we were together and uhm…well we had a child together and so." His answer didn't seem to satisfy her, so he began to blush – something he usually didn't.

"Well – I have sent some letters to…Chouji and he uhm…well…might have told everyone …things about you. But it isn't my fault ! They asked about you, and I answered! That is it!"

"Things like what?" Temari asked evenly.

"Things like you were so bossy, and you were always mad – like you had become pregnant again and…"

"What!?"

"Hey hey! It is the truth! You do act like you are pregnant again – goddamn angry all the time." Shikamaru could see her take a vase from the window and pointed it at him. He covered his face with his arms and closed his eyes.

Then he heard the case slam down on the windows and he dared to open one eye – to see her smirk down at him. "Cry-baby – I can't believe you just did what you did. Don't worry Nara Shikamaru – you'll receive your punishment."

Shikamaru clicked his tongue and rolled his eyes, before smirking himself "like a bossy woman like you could figure out how to fit me…"

-

A/N:MERRY CHRISTMAS – even though it is a couple of days ago, here is what I got XD clothes(damn!), jewellery, make-up – a PSP! A new chair (mmm!), dirge of Cerberus….am I lucky or what XD ending my personal rant here…

Anyway, my long awaited fiction the Pledge – has been posted, and you decide for yourself if you want to read it or not. Our shared profile is Hollow Production – please, if you mind, give me a hint about if it is bad or good…feedback is appreciated. (mmmm…new chair)

A little amused thing from my side, I have **61 alerts** – however, only **10 reviews** pr chapter. XD I find it amusing – really, but anyway as always review if necessary, and I read all reviews etc.

To everyone this might be a bit soon – however, I have now finally figured out how the next chapters of Rokudaime are going to be. It should be surprising – and some are even going to die I must say. I am excited about the Rokudaime ending, should be the best ending so far I ever done.

Anyway – review or read _the pledge _if you'll do me the favour!

All rights to Kishi


	17. Book 1 Chapter 17

Gaara sat still in his seat, studying the ninja before him with a glare. "What is this?" the sand nin trembled slightly and bowed. "It is the Rock nation saying that the Rokudaime is as good as dead."

"Shikamaru" Gaara spoke louder than necessary, causing the doors to open up with a bang. Both Temari and Shikamaru entered, looking flustered, and their clothes looked like they had been fighting or something like that. It didn't bother the Kazekage at the moment; there were more important things to take care of. "Shikamaru. I need to know where Naruto is, _now_."

The shadow nin stared at him a few seconds before shaking his head. "I am sorry, but I do not know where Naruto is – all I know is that they are possibly in the rock country at this moment-"

"Temari, get a medic squad, and the best fighters in the sand," Gaara grew calmer and turned his eyes to her.

His sister saluted and then froze. "…w…Why?"

"The rock country has sent me a message – saying that the Rokudaime will never arrive, so we could just give up."

"What! Did they kill him!?" Shikamaru yelled, slamming his fist into the table. Gaara closed his eyes pained and looked at the door. "You have your orders."

-

Naruto panted hard, and Sakura forced him against a tree. He was in much pain, and her hands hovered above his chest. "Relax Naruto – It's going to be alright." Tohru watched fascinated as the green light intensified at her words. Naruto's panting began to slow down.

His hand suddenly grabbed Sakura by the shoulder, and pushed her into his chest. Clutching her tightly, but leaving her enough space to continue healing him. She hissed at the contact, and tried to break lose, when he whispered. "Sakura – what did Itachi want from you?"

She froze, and turned her gaze to his neck. Sakura then pushed herself out of his embrace, and hissed. "Tohru – get some water, will you?" the little girl looked a bit disappointed at being dismissed, but nodded. "And you call if there is something wrong."

"Yes, Sakura-san."

Naruto then turned his tired gaze to her – even though he was slowly healing on his own, getting his chakra back. "What did he want, Sakura?"

She had her eyes tied to where her hands were working. Feeling him fear the worst she decided perhaps it was time to tell him. "You know…I worked as an undercover agent for Tsunade-sama, for the past seven years…"

He didn't say anything. "However, six years ago, I was captured by Akatsuki for reasons unknown to me – I just tried to kill Itachi. I would've been dead today if they didn't need me." She let her hands go his arm, beginning to heal it. "When I got there – Itachi…I don't know why, he became very fascinated with me." She narrowed her eyes. "…."

Naruto looked the other way, sighing deeply. "So he was here…in order to pursue you to come with him?" Sakura didn't say anything, and began to work on his other arm. She could hear him exhale defeated again. It was obviously bothering him that she didn't say anything. "What did he say, Sakura?"

"Itachi said – that I was weak. Mostly in order to break down my mental consciousness, and said he would protect me from all dangers if I gave him three sons." Sakura's hand moved to his leg, and she felt him twist slightly when she accidentally brushed against his inner thigh. "Sorry…" she muttered. Sakura felt herself become tired, because of the soon overuse of chakra – but it was important that Naruto would be able to move. "Are we far from Suna?" she spoke.

"A days journey…."

Sakura's eyes sprung open and for the first time her gaze was on him. "What!? Are you insane! Teleporting this far – you could die! And with three people too! How – god damn it Naruto! Sometimes I wonder what is going on in your head!" she poked his head with her finger, and he hissed slightly from the pain. "Aren't you supposed to be a Hokage!? A Hokage doesn't do something as suicidal as what you just did – really, sometimes I wonder if you even s-"

Sakura never managed to finish her sentence when Naruto cupped her face and kissed her hard on the lips. Refusing to give in she pushed him away, and was about to restart her rant, when Naruto brought her face to his again. Sakura was still mad at him, tried as hard as she could to get away, but Naruto's grip on her was too tight.

She stopped fighting for a second, and stared at Naruto's closed painful eyes. He looked like he had been to hell and back, and right now she was an angel from heaven. Sakura's shoulders slumped, and he grabbed the opportunity to let his hands wander to her waist. Deciding that perhaps it would make him happy if she returned the kiss, she closed her own eyes and let her hands crawl around his neck. Naruto responded heartily by tightening his embrace, pressing her against his form. Sakura was sure she could taste blood and tears…But what most was striking was how desperate he seemed.

If it was even possible, Sakura's heart began to beat faster than ever before.

-

Hinata made sure the hood around her head was secured tightly, and then grabbed Neji by the hand he had given her. He nodded, as if to say everything was going to be alright.

Two days in the wildness was taking its tall on the young Hyuuga heir, and she was desperate to sleep, or take a bath. Decent food would also invade her mind not too often. Also, Hinata was used to Neji's company ever since their…

…No, she was not going to think of that. It wasn't like it meant anything. Neji himself had told her that many times – that it was for the good of the clan. Hinata didn't mind, she was busy wondering about Naruto. Biting down in her lip she became nervous once again, and unconsciously squeezed Neji's hand. It startled the older Hyuuga and he turned around to watch her. Hinata though didn't say anything, and just brought a hand to her face. It was almost sickening how much she missed the Uzumaki boy.

What sickened her even more, was how Naruto seemed to stare at Sakura. The way his eyes could glint only for her. Perhaps it was because they had known each other for such a long time, and therefore had developed a tighter bond than most. However, Hinata didn't understand – Sakura had been gone for 7 years – she had even betrayed Konoha! Yet, Naruto still might fancy her.

It was enough to make her cry. However, you did not cry when you were in the company of Neji, who dragged her along with him. The other Hyuuga were following closely behind.

It had been dangerous to get out of Konoha. Ever since the Nanadaime had become Hokage, everything became extremely strict. No one was allowed outside Konoha for missions in other countries. They even agreed to peace with Oto – Hinata was very worried about the future situation of the Leaf.

That was when Neji had proposed an escape plan for the most important people in Konoha. Including her and Neji. It had gone a bit too well – and Hinata still worried a lot. Neji gave her hand a squeeze, making her jump a little. Expecting his usual scolding face, Hinata became very surprised when she saw a very tender smile on Neji's face.

"Don't worry – I'll protect you."

-

Shizune sat at her desk, rummaging through her papers. The Nanadaime was not the type of person who treasured what she did – all she ever did was paperwork, paperwork and paperwork. In the end, it was no different than when it was the Godaime or the Rokudaime. Shizune had always been the one to do the dirty work.

She had been careful. It was she who was supposed to distract the Nanadaime while the escape group would run away through the forest. It had been easy for her, Shizune had to admit. A small smile crawled to her lips, as she struggled to not make herself overly suspicious.

The door to the office slammed closed, and she could hear Kabuto's steps coming towards her faster than she had believed he would. Shizune stood up and swung her bag over her shoulder. It was time to go home. Kabuto was not a nice man, and really, all he deserved was a huge punch to the face. Right now she really wished Sakura was actually there.

Before Shizune managed to open the front door, a hand shut the door in front of her. She met face to face with the man with cold black eyes and grey hair. Shizune glared. "What?" she hissed.

Kabuto snarled and pushed her by the shoulder, slamming her into the wall. Luckily she was prepared for that, so it didn't hurt at all. His hand dug into the soft skin around the bone, and she needed to mentally tell herself to calm down.

"You…I know it was you." he snarled.

"What are you talking about? I didn't do anything? What has happened?"

"Don't play stupid with me" Kabuto slammed her into the wall again, harder this time. It was strange that a boy, only nine years younger, could act so childishly. Wasn't he supposed to be 28 now? Shizune thought as she shoved him out of the way. "I don't care who you think you are, but you better start acting reasonably, or I'll have to report this to the Hokage!"

Of course she wasn't stupid. Shizune would never be report anything to the Nanadaime. It was Shikamaru you told things to – she just needed to keep up her mask and barrier. The Kabuto boy shouldn't be underestimated. With a soft click she opened the door, and the last words she heard the night was…

"I know you are hiding something. I will find out – and then you'll wish you had followed the Rokudaime to his death."

Shizune slammed the door closed hard behind her, anger rising showing in her face.

-

Naruto pushed her away, and jumped backwards. His muscles were tense, but he was healed enough to actually move at this point. Sakura, completely dumbfounded, turned her head to the sides, trying to find any possible reason for being pushed away. He looked at the ground before them. Where he stood before, two poison arrows had hit. It looked like they were dangerous enough to kill both him and Sakura. Cracking his knuckles he gave the girl before him a knowing gaze, and she nodded back, standing up.

"You stay behind as backup." he muttered. Naruto formed the seals faster than before, and with one strike of his hand, the landscape before him was demolished into dust. The trees were gone, and only left a man to fall to the ground. The ninja gracefully turned around and landed safely on his feet. He was too far away for Naruto to see any facial traces that might show him who he was.

"Naruto," Sakura spoke behind him, "he uses poison arrows. Be careful, your best offence at this point will be defence."

"Sakura, you just stay behind, you've already lost too most chakra to heal properly. Let me handle this." Naruto could see her bite down in her lip, she weren't happy about the turn of events. However, she nodded – something that surprised him greatly.

"I will find a way to contact the Sand for assistance …I am going after Tohru."

Naruto gave her one last longing glance, but she never managed to return it – she had already escaped through the forest. He jumped out of the way again, when two arrows hit the ground. He growled tiredly. "I am so sick and tired of all of you!" His hands formed the seals without any difficulties. Naruto could feel the Kyuubi start to move – it was dangerous what he was doing. He could risk going into four tails if he didn't keep his emotions cool. "SHIPPUDEN NO JUTSU!"

The tornado came from the sky, smashing into the ground where the ninja had been standing. The earth broke into several pieces, and it twirling into the tornado. Naruto bit down into his lips, and formed a new set of seals. "KATON NO JUTSU!"

The tornado swallowed the fire, involving it into dangerous fireball, burning everything that came into its path. He wasn't so sure that the ninja had gone completely. With speed unmatched he charged forward, but only to meet the edge of a sword trusting towards his head. Naruto jumped backwards, his feet slamming the sword out of the ninjas hand, by hitting it on the flat side.

The masked ninja, obviously a Rock, made a shout in surprise and jumped backwards. He quickly brought his hand to his back, finding his bow to shoot his arrows at Naruto. However, Naruto had already gotten to his feet and ran towards the other. The rock ninja gave him a snarl and fired an arrow at him. The Rokudaime could hardly keep the laughter in, as if he would be stupid or slow enough to get hit by an arrow.

It was a surprise when Naruto brought out a kunai, and cut the ninja by the shoulder. He had barely managed to get out of the way. Naruto however, wasn't interested in cutting him or killing him at this point – all he wanted to do was to remove the mask. It came off with a loud scratch, revealing a face he recognized without a doubt.

"Daikon!"

-

Sakura quickly found Tohru. The girl had stared upon her teacher in shock, when Sakura took her around them arms, and let them both fall to the ground. The blast came, and trees around them cracked from the pressure. Tohru screamed and held unto Sakura with force. "What's happening!?"

"Stay down!" the pink haired kunoichi screamed, pressing the two of them into the ground. As soon as the blast had subsided Sakura jumped up, turning her head to the place where Naruto would be.

"Sakura-san! I saw them – I saw the people from the sand, they are coming here!" Tohru spoke all so sudden, making her teacher stop. For the first time really look at her student. "What?"

Tohru nodded, and excited look in her face. "I saw them! They are coming towards us! I think they saw the explosion."

With a firm hand, Sakura grabbed her by the arm and began to run towards where Naruto was. "Tohru, you know what to do!"

-

Temari grabbed the scroll with ease, commanding the ninjas to retrieve more information. The scroll was opened quickly, and her eyes scanned the worn piece of paper intensively. Her fingers stroked the wooden material, reading every sign, and put them into connection. Her eyes widened. She jumped out of her chair, and ran towards Gaara's office.

The scroll landed on the floor, and the words that were written could only be deciphered if you knew the code.

_The rock army has been seen coming towards Konoha. Parts of the army will arrive to Suna in a matter of days._

-

Sakura felt her feet smash against the ground hard, holding Tohru tightly by her hand and dragging the girl with her. The small girl struggled to keep up with her teacher, but she knew she had to do her best.

The pink haired kunoichi tightened her grip on the girl's hand, as if reassuring her things would be alright. The trees flashed by them quickly, a blur of brown and green. It was a strange sensation – it was as if there were no blur at all – all she could see was the orange in the distance. Even though all there was in her path were brown stupid trees.

That was when she quickly sensed something behind her, and turned her head backwards. Her eyes widened momentarily, when she saw the Godaime Hokage, Tsunade, stand on a branch with crossed arms. Beside her stood her long lost team-mate, Uchiha Sasuke, his hand high into the air, as if he was bidding her goodbye.

"What?" Sakura whispered, her head still staring at her teacher, who opened her mouth. She could see her lips move, and slowly mouth the words…

Sakura though never managed to listen, when she saw Sasuke disappear from her sight. His dark eyes became one with the brown trees and green leaves – and all the remained was her dead teacher, staring at her proudly.

-

Daikon panted hard and jumped away from yet another tornado coming towards him. Of course he had heard of the Rokudaime's unlimited chakra. He avoided yet another tornado again, and lay flat on the ground. However, this was insane – no one could teleport this far, and pull of this many jutsus.

It was time to get away from the Hokage, and go after Sakura. His mission was not the Rokudaime. The Tsuchikage had assigned him the assassin of Haruno Sakura – not to get himself killed by some….monster!

"Naruto!"

They both stopped, and to their surprise Sakura stood in the newly created clearing, Tohru holding unto her hand. Naruto turned around, anger showing clearly in his eyes. "Get away Sakura!"

However, before any of them had registered what happened, Daikon had fired an arrow directly at Sakura. The pink haired woman gasped as she felt the sharp edge hit her in the stomach. Tohru screamed her name, but all Sakura could feel was the poison entering her body – slowly numbing several of parts in her stomach area. "…..sh-"

Naruto was by her side then, completely forgetting about the fight he had fought a few minutes ago. His hand reaching out for the arrow, but Sakura grabbed him by the hand. "No!" he stared at her confused, his eyes wide with fear. "What? Why?" she could feel his other hand squeezes her shoulder slightly, it was shaking badly too.

"If you pull it out it will just make it worse," she winced when the pain came, her face slowly growing more white. "Sakura!" he screamed, Tohru tucking unto her skirt, as if trying desperately to make it all better by doing so. The pink haired woman slowly let herself lie down on the ground, Naruto hovering above her all the time. His blue eyes wide with fear.

She could feel the poison creeping through her veins and her eyesight began to disorientate. With her lack of chakra she couldn't possibly heal herself …Sakura was dying. All because she decided to aid Naruto in his fight. Then she felt him take her hand, clench it tightly, his voice only a murmur. "Sakura! Sakura! Please! Please don't!"

He wasn't going to cry – he promised he would never cry again. Yet, despite all efforts, he felt his eyes get wet. "Please! Sakura! I don't want to lose more of my precious ones! I don't want to be alone! Sakura! Please!"

Tohru gave a small sob, clinging unto her teacher would be improper. However, she ached to touch her, feel the warm smile on reserved for her.

"I have to say something…" Sakura gasped out.

Naruto's eyes snapped up from her wound to her eyes, meeting her green gaze. Not wanting to stop her speech, he just clenched her hand tighter.

"I have lied to you…I have secrets."

His eyes widened.

"……….I…." Sakura could see her teacher behind Naruto. Her form hovering as a guiding angel above him, staring at the dying woman below her.

"………I knew…that the rock had decided to invade Konoha in a few days." She felt his hand suddenly clench even tighter in surprise.

"……." She closed her eyes. "……I was even asked to join them."

She felt him take away his hand, and Tohru asking him what was wrong. Naruto stared upon the pink haired woman. Disbelief, surprise and hurt claiming his frightened face.

The last thing she heard was the footsteps of the Suna troops enter the clearing. "Hokage-sama!"

-

"_Naruto!" the young boys head snapped up. It had only been a few months since Sasuke had died, and Sakura had left too. Tsunade had her arms crossed. _

"_I am tired of seeing you sulking around! So now you listen up!"_

_He didn't say anything in reply._

"_I will make sure you'll become Hokage! So from this day on! You will be my apprentice!"_

_Naruto's eyes widened._

_-_

A/N: did this take me a good while to finish or what? No honest, I have had these major selfesteem problems, couldn't find the will to write or draw anything. Now, what is going to happen after this? Haha – no one will ever guess.

Here are a few hints:

- Someone dies

- Someone is reincarnated  
- Tohru is more than meets the eye  
- Someone leaves, but returns  
- Someone looses a child

If one of you gets all of them right – then I am going to dedicate a chapter to you X3

Questions:

1) what the h..? What is it with Tsunade and Sasuke appearing all the time?

Easy, Sakura is mentally damaged in some way, after having spent time in Akatsuki's care. Tsunade and Sasuke are _not_ ghosts. They are illusions. They represent Sakura's inner emotions, and only appear when she is in a tight situation. Now – they also have a symbolic meaning in the story.

2) What!? What happened to Sakura?

Sakura having used most of her chakra on healing Naruto, has gotten limited muscle use by now. She couldn't avoid the arrow, and since she has no decent amount of chakra, she couldn't possibly heal herself. Knowing Suna probably wouldn't have the measures to heal her properly. So why not just tell Naruto the truth?

Anyway, review or flame me if necessary.

All rights to Kishi!


	18. Book 1 Chapter 18

It had been five days – five days were a short time in a time of pre-war. Temari leaned back into her seat, her hands folded neatly over her stomach in a bored fashion. The soft dripping from the anti-dote rushing into the ninja before her was a calming effect…The woman had already come this far, the chances of the woman surviving had grown a lot these past few days. However, Temari was worried about something completely else. She could imagine Naruto hanging over the bed day and night, holding the lifeless hand into his – his eyes hoping that she would wake up.

Temari turned her eyes to the window, resisting the urge to pull away the curtains and let the sun in. the woman in the hospital bed suddenly made a small cough and clenched her hands. It caused the sand-woman to focus back on the small form of the former leading medic of Konoha.

The pink hair had in the following days lost its shine, and gotten a greyish look along with the usual tanned skin. Haruno Sakura panted hard as her body was struggling through the fever cramps. Temari scooted closer and took Sakura's hand into her own, stroking the knuckles with the outmost tenderness. The coughing continued and Sakura's heart rate quickened. However, it was nothing to worry about – it just showed that the anti-dote was beginning to take its affect.

It would take days for Sakura to wake up – and she wasn't so sure that they had many days left.

-

Tohru didn't like the estate. It was darker and a whole lot dustier than Konoha or Rock, yet she knew this would be a place she had to stay in for a long time. Small feet turned around a corner and looked at the staircase going to the roof. Her brown eyes narrowed and she brushed a few locks of her dark hair behind her ear, with small careful steps she made her way up the sandy concrete. As Tohru met the hot sunlight she needed to shield her eyes because of its strength. She turned her head and searched the roof for Naruto – and to her own surprise she found him sitting on a bench not so far away. His hands held unto his knees hard as if he was going through an insane amount of pain.

Tohru then took the first step towards him….

-

Shikamaru raised an eyebrow at Temari sleeping at her desk. It was an unusual sight, to see stacks of paper surround the sand woman, her head somewhere buried underneath thin pieces of wood.

He walked over to her and with a quick movement of his hand shook her by the shoulder. She shot up from her desk, grabbing the table hard as if in shock. Shikamaru's eyes were a bit wide with amusement when he saw the look on her face. Temari was panting hard and tried to somehow figure out what had just happened.

"……you were sleeping?" he asked, even though it was the most obvious thing in the world

Temari look just as shocked as him. "I was _what_!?"

He quickly snatched a chair from his left and sat down, "Got a tough week eh?" he had this usual bored expression on his face and she just go the sudden urge to smack him hard in the head.

However, she did none of these things and just rubbed her temple. "Yeah – you try being the main manager of the Suna economy and at the same time being very worried about Haruno-san"

Shikamaru nodded as if he understood something Temari obviously felt he would never do. "How is she doing?"

"Better … the antidote is slowly breaking down the poison." She took some chocolate on her desk and threw it into her mouth. "But its defiantly hard -…I am a bit puzzled, has Naruto-kun visited her yet?"

Shikamaru shook his head in denial. "No, he hasn't"

She leaned back into her chair, hands on her stomach. He couldn't help but admire her fingers for a second, how they seemed a bit hard yet gentle as she held her stomach almost protectively. It reminded him of their time in Konoha, how often she would sit like that. But it would be with a very much larger stomach. Temari turned her gaze to the ceiling. "I feel like there is something Naruto isn't telling us…"

"Make love to me."

Temari almost fell down of her chair in shock. She knew Shikamaru was very open about how he felt – to him it was too troublesome to lie anyway. However, she couldn't help but feel very surprised by his sudden request. "W…what!?"

"We're going into a war – you know how I feel …I have nothing to lose by this"

"Are you crazy!?" she stood up, her face growing hotter for every minute that passed. Shikamaru went silent. "I can't believe you think of me as a woman whom you can take advantage of when she's down!? Eh!? Well – there's a surprise in store for you then – get out!"

Shikamaru sat still.

"Get out Nara Shikamaru!"

Yet Temari of the Sand found herself being unable to move just as him.

-

Hinata took the water silently, letting Neji examine her for any wounds that she might have gotten. Hanabi was panting beside her. The younger woman had been fighting off various enemies and gotten even worse wounds than Hinata. However, Neji was afterall Hinata's…

"Hey – sister." Hanabi spoke out loud, making both Neji and Hinata turn towards her. Hinata lowered the bottle with water and gave it to Neji. "Yes?"

"Do you think….we'll die?"

Hinata got a sad expression on her face. "Of course we're not getting killed. You and Neji are strong enough to fight off any enemy we might encounter," but then she gave her a smile. Hanabi though didn't look.

"So…..this is war?" she asked. Neji gulped down the last bit of the water, and stuffed the bottle into the bag. Hinata turned her face to him, but he didn't look back at her. She bit her lip.

"Yes…this is war."

Hanabi nodded to herself. "Even in war the strongest people can die." She clenched her fist. "We can all die."

"Yeah…."

-

"_Higher up with the leg! God! Who taught you this stuff – it is useless in a battle!" Tsunade yelled across the field to a desperately panting Naruto. Jirayia pushed his lips and frowned. "You're insulting me! I know what I was doing!"_

_Tsunade rubbed her forehead and grunted in frustration. "Well, it won't help him in a battle, he needs to get better at his taijutsu."_

_The white-haired Sannin raised an eyebrow at her. "Are you implying I am a bad teacher?"_

"_No – but if he has to become Hokage he needs to be better than everybody else in the village." She turned her head to him. "And that means both you and me – no time for mistakes, Naruto needs to know _everything._"_

_Jirayia couldn't help but agree._

_-_

Tohru sat silently in the hospital room, the curtains shielding her from the sun. The little girl had her hands in her lap, her eyes closed painfully as she tried not to cry. She could hear how Sakura's slow heart rate began to quicken a bit. Tohru turned her head upwards to stare at Sakura.

The older woman's eyes slowly opened as she tried to figure out where she was. Tohru smiled sadly, yet excited. "Sakura-san…" she spoke in a low tone.

Sakura turned her head, her eyes clouded in confusion. It just made Tohru smile even more and scooted closer on her chair. "How do you feel? Sakura-san?"

She coughed slightly and weakly opened her mouth yet no words managed to escape her lips. The younger girl just nodded with understanding. "Temari-san said that you were lucky you came so early to Suna, if it weren't for the Sand squad you wouldn't have survived." Tohru brushed some of her dark hair behind her ear.

"Naruto-san and I came out very fine – so don't worry about us." She bit her lip wanting to cry. "N…now you just have to get healthy again…o…okay?"

The voice was weak and exhausted, but it was there. "Tohru-chan…." Sakura closed her eyes again and with a shaking arm she moved her hand to take Tohru's. The smaller girl grabbed the hand without hesitation and let out a small sob. She rubbed Sakura's knuckles, feeling the older woman just stare at her with a tired expression.

"I won't die…" she whispered again and this made Tohru break into a loud cry.

-

"Hanabi!" Hinata screamed as Neji dragged her with him, Hanabi left to fight off some of the sound ninjas. It had been quiet, way too quiet, Hinata had the distinct feeling that somehow they weren't alone. She was right.

So she watched how the Konoha ninja fell one by one, the strongest warriors having a sword through their chest.

There was just so much blood.

Now the only option was to run….

"Hanabi!" she screamed again, which only made Neji tuck unto her arm harder, forcing her to run faster. "goddamnit Hinata! Run!"

"We need to get Hanabi! We can't let her stay behind!" she tried to make him let go of her hand, but he wouldn't and just pulled harder. "We can't! Damnit! You have to run Hinata-sama! I tell you to run!"

"What if she dies!? We can't let her die! She is my sister!"

"Shut up! Run! Run!" she could hear his broken voice and sense how terrified he was. It couldn't be true, this was Neji, he was never afraid.

Then a giant explosion was heard from behind them and they turned to see a huge part of the forest being caught in the flames.

"HANABI!"

-

Kabuto panted hard as he barely avoided being caught by the flames. He never thought it would be necessary to burn of a large of the forest, but it apparently was. A lot of the ninjas had escaped – but at least he had managed to kill a huge amount too ….amongst those…a Hyuuga royalty.

Suddenly he got a great reason to smirk.

-

Sakura sat up in her bed, her bare feet touching the ground as the medic nin needed to help her steady on her feet. This was why Sakura had always hated being poisoned. The whole affair by having your body slowly recovering from the numbness was even worse than when you were under the poisoning itself.

She looked shortly to the vase at her bed, only Tohru and Temari had been kind enough to visit her. The memory of her confession to Naruto made her want to get poisoned all over again and die – at least it would hurt less.

"Ah! Good Sakura-san! Just one more step!!"

Why was the nurse so annoying?

-

Temari was blown away – Shikamaru sat in her chair again!

"What are you doing here?" She spoke in a low dangerous voice. He didn't bother to answer and continued to play with baby Asuma in his lap. Temari frowned even deeper. "What are you doing here?"

"Have you told him?" he asked rather bored.

She blinked, crossing her arms. "What do you mean?"

"Have you told Gaara that the child is mine…?"

-

_You sit there in your heartache…_

_-_

Naruto sat up, feeling his face grow red in the everlasting sun. It didn't bother him much though. He had other things on his mind. His hand wandered to his heart, grabbing it slightly at the thought of what had happened between him and Sakura.

Had she deceived him so she could get information to the rock and the Akatsuki? Did she really?...Did she?

A shadow suddenly jumped towards him, but he didn't move.

There stood none other than the ever knowing Ino, probably from the Konoha squad. "S…Shikamaru! Where is he!?"

Naruto didn't look at her; instead he let his gaze wander to the cool steel of the railing. Ino were panting hard, her hands clutching a wound on her shoulder."…t…the Konoha squad, who were supposed to assist the people from Konoha to Suna got attacked by Rock and Oto nins…"

He turned this time to look at her. "Apparently the rock has gotten an alliance with the new Konoha, and wants to use Konoha against the ones who fled."

"How many did we lose?" he asked, feeling the anger becoming stronger.

"At least 50 people – among those Hyuuga Hanabi and the Daimyo's son."

His eyes widened at the remark. "What?"

"Hyuuga Hinata and Hyuuga Neji are on their way here…"

Suddenly Naruto wasn't there anymore.

-

Hinata looked up, her eyes teary and the only thing she could see was Naruto standing before her, his eyes wide with fear. "H…Hinata – are you alright?" Neji scoffed and decided to walk away at the moment.

"N…Naruto!" she exclaimed and hugged him hard, burying her face into his chest, while he embraced her back. Of course he knew she was married, and it wasn't appropriate that he hugged her like this. However, Hinata was grieving and this was all he could do for her.

"Naruto-kun…Ha..Hanabi, she…she…"

He placed his head on top of hers, as he cradled her, with Neji making sure he didn't do anything inappropriate.

Without Naruto realising, Sakura was completely gone from his mind…

-

"_The Godaime Tsuchikage has summoned you Hanara Sakura." The rock nin spoke, and quickly pushed her into the office. "He says that he is worried about his health, and wants you to do a check on him."_

_Sakura looked confused, but none the less walked in and stood still. "You summoned me?"_

_The older man sat at his desk, his hands folded as he looked upon her in deep concentration. He licked his lip and looked down at his table in sadness. "Sakura-san, you must know that I have enjoyed having in my country, you have been a great help to us …- but it seems that we should stop fooling around."_

_She tensed and clenched her hands, drawing chakra into them. The Tsuchikage continued to stare at her. "You may have fooled my country and I give you credit for that – but I have to say…"_

_She could feel herself getting frightened._

"…_that you have not fooled me, Haruno Sakura."_

_-_

Sakura sat up quickly, panting hard, one hand clutching her shirt tightly. Her hands were trembling against her chest, as she was remembering a horrible nightmare. The green eyes searched the room, afraid that she might see something – she gave a small gasp when she saw a ghostly figure at her window.

The old man turned around, his face white and dried blood came out of his nose. Sakura scooted farther away from him. ".w…what do you want?"

He moved his hand to point at the approaching Rock army. His mouth opened slowly. "Protect them – or you'll regret it."

"B…but you're dead…" she whispered. "You died 3 years ago…"

He gave her a smirk, and then disappeared as Sasuke had done a few days earlier, leaving Sakura alone in the hospital room, wide-eyed and scared for her life.

-

Hinata sat in the small hospital room, getting her wounds tended by one of the nurses. She watched Neji sit on the opposite side of her, his hands folded and his gaze towards the floor. The nurse was busy tending a large wound on his arm and he hissed slightly when she washed it.

Hinata looked extremely guilty, the traces of tears still there. It wasn't very Hyuuga-like to embrace a man you weren't married to. She could feel her father's disapproving gaze and Hanabi's disgusted expression. She needed to clench her hands in order to not cry again, until Neji spoke.

"I have been asked to assist the Kazekage with the Konoha business. So you'll need to entertain yourself, I propose you start training, we are afterall going to war."

Hinata gulped and looked at her lap. "Yes, Neji-nii-san."

He nodded. "Good – and I propose that you perhaps might figure out what has happened between Naruto-sama and Sakura-san. Something tells me it has something to do with the upcoming war."

She closed her eyes. "Yes, Neji-nii-san."

"And start stepping up for yourself, you're the Hyuuga clan Head now, you'll have to lead the Hyuugas."

"Yes, Neji-nii-san."

She glanced at him shortly, seeing the sad expression on his face. Hinata bit her lip, knowing very well he was thinking about TenTen and Lee now.

Lee had died shortly after Naruto and Sakura had left Konoha, and TenTen in sadness, had gone on a suicidal mission – she didn't return. Hinata knew what sort of feelings Neji held for his former team-mates.

War made all people alone.

-

This is chapter 18 – uuuuh – aren't you people excited?

Next chapter will reveal – 'who'll leave?'

Everyone who wants to guess, shall say who and why the person will leave. X3

I have posted a whole lot of clues in this chapter, and I think this was an annoying chapter, especially because it has been in my mind for a long time. If you find gramma mistakes or spelling mistakes contact me - and I will try as soon as possible to correct them.

All rights to Kishi XD

By the way - none of the ones who guessed got everything right in my little quiz.


	19. Book 1 Chapter 19

Gaara stood with his back towards the setting sun, his eyes boring into the blue ones of Uzumaki Naruto. Naruto had his arms crossed, carrying the same suspicious gaze towards the Kazekage. The red-haired man coughed and turned to the woman behind him. She had dark-red hair and unusually pale white skin, something you rarely saw in the dessert.

"Who is she Gaara?"

The woman frowned, her eyebrows turning down very delicately. She carried the air of a woman raised to be regal. Gaara then turned back to Naruto. "My arranged wife, Harrah of the Sand. This is Uzumaki Naruto, Rokudaime Hokage of the Leaf." His voice was low and monotone as always. His wife remained silent at his side. Naruto raised an eyebrow, not feeling in the mood to be introduced to any new women. "I believe that you had yet to meet her, and proposed to introduce both to each other."

Harrah was one of those typical sand women. Her purpose since birth was to get married to the Kazekage. Gaara obviously was not the type who went on dates or had any interest in finding a wife. So the village council had kindly provided him with the best potential wife. Harrah was skilled in politics and was raised to be kind, regal and last of all silent, unless she was spoken to. Nothing like those uncontrollable women from the leaf.

Naruto laughed at this; "Really? Well, Gaara, as you can see I am busy preparing for the attack from the Rock."

"Tell him, Harrah."

The smaller woman stepped forward, her red lips seeming to compliment her already red hair. Her small mouth opened, revealing a very clear voice. "Haruno Sakura has awoken. However, we believe that something must have occurred. Both of us have noticed a lack of conversations or should I say, no verbal or physical contact, between the two of you since you have arrived. We believe that something might have happened, that could have led to this abnormal behaviour. And we would like you to introduce us to this problem."

Naruto blinked in surprise, but his face darkened at the mention of Sakura's name. He knew very well that Gaara caught that look. Then it was Gaara's turn to step forward. "Uzumaki Naruto, we propose that you either tell us, or we will not have any interest in keeping Haruno Sakura here. Mainly because of the… valuable information, one of our prisoners, Daikon I presume his name is, has been giving us."

He watched as the blue eyes moved slightly, but Gaara couldn't quite place why they moved. Fear? Distress? Perhaps a memory of something? He turned to Harrah. She bit her lip, and spoke once more. "Even if you do not tell us, I believe Haruno Sakura will, we have assigned your ninja, Yamanaka, to use her techniques on her – so if there is something you want to add, then please inform us now, Naruto-san."

The room grew uncomfortably cold at the mention of their plans, and the emotions passed freely Naruto's eyes for a second. Anger, despair, betrayal was one of the things Gaara saw clearly. Not that they really needed to confront Naruto about what they planned on doing to Sakura anyway. But perhaps Gaara could get a better clue on what caused him to act differently. It had been an idea provided from his wife of one year.

Naruto clicked his tongue and grabbed his sword. "I am going to the front gate"

-

Ino, to put it mildly, been very surprised when she had entered Sakura's hospital room. It smelled awfully of medicine, not that she wasn't used to it. But something told her that Sakura had been poisoned badly. The pink-haired woman was sitting upright in her bed, bangs clearly underneath her eyes. Ino saw that if she used her family jutsu on Sakura, the poor woman would faint in exhaustion.

"Hey, Ino-pig…" the woman spoke from the bed without turning from the window.

Forget it, Ino was going to make the woman faint over and over again just to get her back on that one. She pulled out a chair and sat down besides Sakura. "You know why I am here, don't you forehead-girl?"

Sakura just gave a half-heartedly laugh, her eyes turn down to her hands. "Would spoil the fun if I said I did, so I don't." Ino's smirk was replaced with a frown. Something was not right. Not right at all. Ino had seen the pink-haired woman down many times, especially after the death of Sasuke. But she had never seen Sakura…this far out.

"So, Haruno Sakura, two weeks ago, you were attacked by the rock ninja, Daikon I believe." The green eyes twisted and her hands clenched tighter on the sheet. "You were poisoned and have been near death a couple of times during the two weeks you have been here. As far as I can see you have healed a lot since then." Ino paused to see Sakura's reaction. There wasn't any and she continued. "You have lost a lot of blood, so that is the reason why you have been feeling very ill since then. However, we have noticed something much unexpected lately." Sakura gave her a side-glance and Ino continued. "The Rokudaime Hokage seems to have _not_ visited you at _all_. Not only that but he refuses to talk about you. Sakura, he doesn't even ask about your status or condition. Can you give me any reason why?"

The room fell silent and all Ino could stare at was Sakura's thinking expression. Sakura was trying to find the right words to put into this situation. "Why don't you ask him yourself – I have after all been lying in my bed for two weeks straight. I have been incapable of knowing if he was visiting or not."

Ino sighed and lifted her hands, forming the seals for mind-entering. "Fine, if that is how you want to play this. I have one more question for you before I tear into your mind Haruno. Something that has been bothering me for some time."

Sakura sat up straight, seeming a bit frightened by the turn out of events. Could you get amnesia by simply wanting it? Probably not. Ino's blue eyes caught hers, and they exchanged a very serious look.

"Haruno Sakura, have you fallen in love with the Rokudaime Hokage?"

Ino could see the pink-haired women tense and have her eyes widened. Sakura's mouth parted slightly in surprise and no words escaped. "Because what you did _Sakura_, seems to me to be more than just protection. You almost give up your life. What happened in the cottage? Why does the Hokage seem so somber and depressed? We're guessing he feels betrayed, why?" Ino paused, seeing Sakura's sudden changes in facial expressions. "And why are my questions surprising you?"

"…………no" Sakura spoke. Ino raised an eyebrow. "I have not fallen in love with the Hokage." Ino gave Sakura a small smirk in return.

"Right – that's all I needed to know, _Sakura._"

-

Harrah looked at Gaara as they walked down the hallway to his office. He had the same stiff and silent countenance as he always had. Very uncharacteristically she spoke. "Gaara-sama, can I ask why you asked me to join you in this?"

Gaara didn't turn to her or show that he acknowledge her presence. Once they were far enough and in a private room he did broke the silence. "I believe that I might have to use you for some purposes around Suna. I cannot have you waste your abilities by sitting and drinking tea all day. Besides, Temari has requested to work with some of the Konoha refugees that arrived three days ago."

"Do you believe that her baby is Nara Shikamaru's?"

"…" he didn't answer and just opened the door into another, warmer room – the plant on the table needed water he noted himself. Gaara then opened his mouth to speak. "I believe that I will give Temari the consequences of having a child outside marriage." He pauses to think, "once she gains the courage to tell me." Then he turned to her. "However, now that war comes upon us, I believe it will be time to renew that alliance between Konoha and Suna. Possibly by a marriage arrangement – do you believe it will be fitting?"

Harrah only gave a small nod, readjusting her obi. Gaara seeing this took his time to sit down in his chair. Folding his hands as he stared into the sky, Gaara wondered what to do next.

"Maybe we should focus on the battle ahead. You may not be a jinchuriki anymore, Gaara-sama." He looked at her, narrowing his eyes to see what she where she was heading. "But the Rokudaime Hokage is, and he could become unstable."

Gaara closed his eyes. "I believe that I will have to make Yamato assist him in battle, if the Kyuubi should get out of control."

"Haruno Sakura?"

"…Harrah, I think I'll be forced to…"

-

Hinata snapped her eyes open and shot up from bed. She stared at Neji as he put on his war-clothes. They shared a tent with several other Konoha ninjas. To be honest, Hinata felt at home in the crowded place. Her eyes were puffy and red, and her pillow had been soaked with tears. Neji never blamed her and just continued to sleep.

"Where …where are you going?" she whispered, Neji turned to look at her and readjusted his shirt. "The Rock will be attacking soon, and I am less wounded than any of the people here. I have to assist Konoha and Suna."

Hinata closed her mouth and moved so that she sat a bit better. "You'll be coming back right?" Neji didn't say anything, and wrapped some of the bandages around his arm. Hinata frowned sadly and tried again. "Will you…"

"Hinata-sama, I was assigned to protect you till the day I die. I am a man of honor and a Hyuuga. So do not sit here and worry too much. I'll be back."

"Neji-nii-s…"

"Neji." Hinata blinked and watched his back. "Call me Neji, Hinata-sama. We both know that we're adults now. We are even equal as shinobi. You are also the head of the clan. I am the supportive role, so do not refer to me as someone you look up to. It should be quite the opposite." He glanced at her over his shoulder, "and you do know what we are now – you're afterall my…"

She nodded fiercely. "I…I understand, but please -…I do not want to lose anymore people right now, Neji-ni…Neji…"

"Hinata-sama – sleep" She looked at her lap defeated and with a soft sigh she lay down, closing her eyes. "The Hokage-sama has asked me to join him. I promise I'll be back, so you don't worry Hinata-sama."

Neji exited the tent without looking back.

-

Just as Ino was about to begin her mind invasion jutsu, the door opened with a bang, startling both of the girls. Ino looked back with an angry expression on her face and shrieked. "What do you think you're doing!?"

The Konoha ninja panted hard, and lifted his hand. "…T…the Hokage-sama orders you to meet him at the gate immediately. He needs your help on the battlefield."

The pink-haired woman was visibly confused, and turned to Ino. "What's going on?"

Ino stood up, and flattened her purple skirt and readjusted her blond hair. "The Rock has decided to attack us for obviously known of course. They, according to certain people, allied themselves with Orochimaru in Konoha. So we have half an army on our backs. Naruto believes they need to...reconsider." Before Sakura could manage to say anything, Ino pointed a finger on her. "And _you_ are not going _anywhere_ – you got that?"

Sakura's green eyes widened slightly and she sat still. The other woman nodded, took her bag and with hasty steps walked out of the room. Sakura sat behind, her eyes narrowed and her hands clenched – she wouldn't sit there and be worthless…

-

Naruto turned quickly, his eyes widening when he saw the small girl before him. Her dark brown hair, loose from its usual pig-tails, ran down her young shoulders. For a girl only ten, she was incredibly beautiful. Naruto couldn't help but crack a small smile. "Well…hey …Tohru-chan."

The gaze she gave him was sad, but at the same time disapproving in a way. "Where you going, Naruto-san?"

Naruto scratched his head. "Well, I have to fight. The Rock has decided to attack Suna and I need to defend my ally. That is what a Hokage does." Tohru frowned deeper and Naruto noted that she had gotten taller since he saw her for the first time.

"You'll be back right?" Tohru asked in a quiet voice.

Naruto couldn't help but laugh a bit. "Of course but I got to go now Tohr-" her small arms quickly went around his waist as she clung to him tightly.

-

"_Heh…I can't believe a person like you is Hokage…"_

_Naruto's eyes widened, before he laughed. "Heheheh! You defiantly are Sakura's apprentice! No doubt about that."_

_The girl stopped her speech and stared at him confused. "Excuse me…"_

"_Hahahahah! That was the first thing Sakura-chan said to me when she saw me after six years."_

_Naruto slammed his hand into the desk as he tried to stop his uncontrollable laughter. "Ehehehehe"_

"…" _was Tohru's response._

-

Naruto gave Tohru a small smile and petted her hair. He remembered how tough the girl had been when he met her the first time. She was hard and cold just like Sakura, but in reality Tohru was a girl who need acknowledgement more than anyone in this world. Naruto's hands left her hair. "Of course I'll be back, Tohru-chan!"

With a quick turn he walked from the front-gate, out to the battlefield. Leading everyone in camp who wasn't wounded too badly. Tohru stared at his shrinking form, wondering if Sakura had been wrong about him the whole time. To Tohru, it seemed that Naruto would continue on and on without ever stopping. He would never die. Naruto was an unstoppable force that just smashed through everything.

Naruto was still cheery and positive in front of everyone. Tohru wasn't fooled. She knew this was just his tough outer skin. Tohru knew how angry he was, she could feel it in her bones. It was _terrifying_.

Perhaps that was why Sakura had warned her…Tohru had a very bad feeling about this.

-

Naruto stood proudly, a small white cloak shielding him from the sun. Neji and Shikamaru stood by his sides, and the shadow nin turned to see the Kazekage arrive with Yamato. The Hokage frowned at this, but continued to stare ahead. He suddenly without warning jumped forward, leaving everyone else behind. A dust cloud was left in the now missing Hokage's wake.

Gaara frowned and with a low voice ordered all of the ninjas to not follow Naruto and just stay behind to fight those who manage to escape him.

Naruto ran through the desert lands towards the rocky outcroppings that marked Rock country at incredible speeds. He had decided to save his chakra from teleporting for the battle and proceeded through the terrain with his body almost level to the ground.

The dust clouds created, could be seen from miles away but Naruto didn't care. He wanted to hit the armies' set up to attack Suna head on. Fangs in his mouth and claws in his hands grew in anticipation.

The Rock army had settled in a large thriving border town named Fukeizai. They were in preparation for their Tsuchikage's orders to invade Wind country. Consisting of fifty Jounin, a hundred Chuunin and over two hundred Gennin, the whole army geared themselves for a fight once they saw a massive plume of dust heading their way. They immediately went on alert and awaited the menace.

That something came to an abrupt stop in front the first line of defenders. It turned out to be a man in dusty white and red robes. A hat marked 'Kage' covered the man's face till he cockily turned his chin up, laughing. They all saw the tall man give them a psychotic smile and look about hungrily.

There came no clichéd speech or heroic soliloquies from the man in robes. The Jounins in charge did not give him a second chance for one either, as they threw high powered ninjutsus at the figure. The chakra laden forces smashed into the spot as cover for the appearance of massive five story tall humanoid summons made of rock.

These imposing monstrosities shambled towards the intruder, lifting their knobbly arms to strike. Five of these hulks approached the dusty fog that enveloped the attacker's position. All ninjutsu attacks stopped as the Rock army caught their breath and readied for the next assault.

Like before, they heard laughter. Of the same voice, only now it came from everywhere. All around them, tens of voices. No, hundreds of voices, all laughing heartily. This unnerved most of the ninjas Chuunin down. Suddenly the five hulking summons toppled on themselves, returning to a pile of boulders without any sign of attack or resistance. That was when the Jounin realized they had a problem.

The laughter stopped to be replaced by a new sound behind them. In wide eyed surprise and the Rock shinobis all turned around. Army leaders gave orders quickly to counter a rear attack strategy the enemy was using. They were too busy to keep their attention in front of them where the rocks still tumbled down from the broken summons.

Naruto watched quietly as the shinobi in front of him ran as far away as they could. His grim smile never dropped as he willed to existence hundreds more shadow clones. The shinobis will be sandwiched together with no hope of escaping. In his delirium Naruto dipped further into his power then ever before.

Several thousand shadow clones, melded in his image, were brought forth to enforce the Rokudaime's will. The Will of Flame will be brought to burn all those who stand against Konoha. Starting with Fukeizai.

Fire, a rage all consuming and growing took hold of Naruto hours later. Blood streamed out of his palms as claws dug in and he shook from head to toe. A force of creation and destruction engulfed the Rokudaime in madness. Uzumaki Naruto's murderous glee only grew as he felt more souls near him from the direction of the desert. He turned to the desert, a body sheathed in wild blood red fire. For the first time in so long, the Rokudaime gave in to the intoxication of power unrestrained.

His precious people are dieing. She betrayed him. They have all wronged him. And Uzumaki Naruto is sick and tired of running...

…he was tired of escaping…

…tired of being…the one to get betrayed by Konoha and the woman he had…loved…

"Naruto!" the familiar voice shrieked and he saw her. Fever struck face and narrowed eyes, her fist ready to stop the Kyuubi at all costs. The woman wouldn't let him harm any of the ninjas.

Anger.

Rage.

He could feel it so badly...there was no way he could stop it. His hands went to his face, and he could sense her worry…

His eyes snapped open when he felt the Kyuubi aura pierce through his body and his mind seemed to disappear in the shadows. He felt her hands slam against his chest, trying to suppress the chakra. Sakura screamed when a red tail slammed against her body, making her fly across the field, with a huge wound on her shoulder, screaming out in terror.

"ROAAAAAAAAAARGH!" his scream echoed through the valley. Yamato was still too far away to do something. Sakura started to panic, watching as Naruto slowly bent forward, his chakra-claws digging into the hard rock underneath him.

The anger, Naruto couldn't keep it in, he needed to do something, he needed to get it out. Her name seemed like a curse upon their lips as they had whispered through the hallways in the Suna mansion.

Before Sakura could do anything he grabbed her by her wounded shoulder and pushed her upwards, holding her in the air.

-

_He could see how Daikon's poison moved through her face, and made her pale. Sakura lying there, more vulnerable than he had seen her in years. He wanted to tell her so much, he wanted her to know so much – he opened his mouth to say something, but she beat him to it._

"_I…I have lied to you."_

_-_

He could see it – her pale green eyes wide with fear, as he grabbed her shoulders more fiercely, the killer intent was without a doubt there. He wanted to end her life with that horrible wide grin on his face.

Naruto barely manage to register the chakra suddenly streaming out of her body, as she hit him in the chest, making him fly through the sky like. His body slammed into the trees, and made a whole area naked, the tails continuing to emerge. Three tails…

Sakura had to stop him before the fourth came. She thanked the Godaime for teaching her perfect chakra control, when she started to concentrate the chakra in her hands. She could see the blue colour so brightly at the tip and she swallowed hard – none had survived to see the jutsu at its full scale. Sakura wondered if she would too, it was afterall suicidal.

Sakura swung around, leaving the chakra to create a circle around her. As she pushed out more chakra, it would end up creating a wall. An honour to the Haruno crest. Naruto stood up, the tail slowly forming and she could feel the fear coming, claiming her as a victim. He was going to kill her – and this time, sorry wasn't enough.

He sprung towards her, the claws ready to tear up anything in its path. Sakura barely avoided the charge. "Naruto! Stop this!" she screamed. She could see the red eyes switching to blue for less than a second, staring into her terrified eyes. "Stop this!" However, he didn't and charged her again with even greater force than before. Sakura jumped backwards and readied her fist to knock him out.

"Sakura! Stop that jutsu now!" a hand grabbed her by the mouth and slammed her backwards, making her hit the ground hard. Naruto screamed out when Yamato placed the seal on his body. "Seal!"

The Kyuubi's terrified scream ran through the air, filling the whole valley.

Sakura looked up and found to her surprise, Jirayia standing above her. He was giving her a very disapproving look. "You could've killed him with that jutsu…and yourself too" she shut her mouth and just glanced at Yamato lifting up the unconscious form of Naruto. He was also staring down at her too. But Yamato looked at her with anger instead. "What did you do? He went completely nuts – He was even charging towards Suna-forces!"

Sakura couldn't say a thing…

-

Gaara had his hands folded as he glared at the woman before him. Her pink hair still was still tainted with the blood of the battlefield – he knew it would be necessary. Shikamaru and Neji stood at his sides, being the substitutes for Naruto as long as he was out of commission.

"Haruno Sakura, we have matters to discuss" She didn't say anything in reply. "Hyuuga Neji, Nara Shikamaru and I, have concluded that you are the key to Uzumaki Naruto's uncontrolled rage. By having you here we bring many people in danger. The probability of him going insane is far greater than we could have imagined. Naruto hasn't lost himself to the Kyuubi demon in years. Shikamaru believes he last lost control before he even became Jounin. Berserker raging in battle can be ruled out. But his behaviour concerning you before is our only clue into why he lost control. None of us find you in any way trustworthy as well. For the safety of my people, our combined troops and Konoha's Hokage, you will be banished."

Sakura looked at the ground.

"Haruno Sakura, you have _one_ hour to get all of your stuff, say your farewells and leave the capital and Suna. Neji will escort you to the border, so we're sure you're out of the wind-country. What you do afterwards is none of our business. Just as long as our business is none of your business. When you have left the country, your Konoha citizenship along with your Suna-visa will be terminated. You're not allowed to enter Suna, and if you do and we find you, we will kill you as if you were a missing-nin. Do you understand?"

She nodded.

"Good. Now, leave."

Neji took her by the arm and led her out of the office, leaving Shikamaru and Gaara alone.

"Why do I have the feeling this isn't going to work out?" the shadow-nin muttered, Gaara began to sign the papers, before answering.

"That doesn't matter, Haruno was a potential danger and we have to get rid of her – I am not interested in her past or how she can help us. She does more damage than good"

-

_Sakura hovered above him, a large grin on her face. Naruto smiled, feeling his weight become heavier with her on top. Her hands went to his sides, ready to start one of their beloved tickle fights. "Hehe – so, Uzumaki Naruto? Any last words?" she muttered, touching his orange shirt as a warning of her future actions._

"_Yeah – I actually do…" she grinned wider at this, and his hands suddenly went to her hips, locking her in place. "I want you to stay with me forever and ever and ever and ever…" he stopped speaking when he saw the surprised expression on her face. He then grinned – but the cottage was unnaturally silent._

_-_

_Sakura's eyes were wide with fear as she gazed upon his form. Jirayia's voice screamed, but he didn't hear the words. All he could see with the gaping wound on her shoulder and her green eyes glittering with fear. Her chest heaving as she tried to breathe so badly, but it was impossible – he was sure she was going to cry._

_Then Naruto felt Yamato's fist on his stomach – and everything went dark._

_-_

Naruto shot up from his bed, his eyes wide and his body shaking from fever. His limbs were sore and he had no idea where he was. His blue eyes scanned the dark room and he could hear the rain outside the Suna windows. It was so rare when it rained in Suna that they celebrated it. But when he looked out, there were no sparkling lights, only the feeling of mourning.

Then he saw her. Tohru was sitting in a chair beside the window. She was looking out, as if looking for someone. His eyes narrowed, Tohru never sat up at night without Sakura. Even then, she would be in bed.

Something was wrong.

"Tohru-chan?" Naruto asked, but the smaller girl didn't say anything. Her eyes continued to search the landscape. It made him sit up fully, his eyes narrowed. "Why aren't you sleeping?"

Tohru looked at her lap, clenching her fist.

-

"_S…Sakura-san! You are alright!? The poison didn't get you!?" Tohru yelled when her teacher entered the room with their belonging. A man followed her closely behind. Sakura didn't answer._

_Tohru raised her eyebrows in confusion and followed them to their bags. Sakura hoisted her bag over her shoulder and looked through a small shrine with jewellery. "Sakura-san?" she spoke again, this time both of the adults looked up, and down at the little girl. Tohru could see the sadness in her teacher's eyes._

_Sakura bent down so she was on eye level with Tohru. Before she knew of it, Sakura hugged her with full force. It didn't take Tohru long to hug back, just grateful that she was okay. Until Sakura softly started whispering._

"_Tohru-chan – I cannot stay here any longer. They do not want me here. I need you to stay with Naruto, he'll keep you safe." Tohru's eyes widened. "Do not attempt to follow me, because I will not return. If you see the Akatsuki, run. As fast as you can."_

"_Sakur-"_

"_Shhh – it'll be alright. We'll meet one day, I promise. Even if it's going to be many years from now." Tohru could feel Sakura's lips touch her temple, as she dried away the little girl's tears. Akatsuki haven't broken Sakura completely, and Tohru wouldn't do so either. So all Sakura could see was the small flicker of sadness claiming her little Tohru's eyes._

_Then Sakura smiled, and stroked the girl's cheek. "I can't take you with me, but please become…a wonderful woman."_

_Tohru brought a hand to her own mouth, as if preventing a sob. "Sakura-san…"_

"_Tohru-chan, you know…it's alright to call me mom…" _

_With those words Sakura stood up and walked out of the room. Neji followed behind her, carefully making sure she didn't run anywhere._

_-_

Temari stared at Sakura's departing figure off in the distance. She had been lucky to escape Gaara's scolding and found a cool place at the great wall outside the Suna capital. Her dark green eyes closed as she enjoyed the feeling of the rain soaking her body. A hand touched her shoulder. Temari did not need to turn around to know who it was.

"Sakura was a nice woman…" she muttered under her breath, he just tightened his hold on her shoulder.

"You should've seen Naruto. The first time he woke up..." Her eyes opened again. "He was so angry when I mentioned her name. Naruto smashed the tray with food away, saying he never wants to hear her name again." Temari turned her head to the man. "Is this what happens with lovers?"

Shikamaru looked at her and then away. "It's strange." His hand tightened even more. "I have the feeling that … even though Naruto is overwhelmed by emotions now, he won't…He wont hate her forever." Temari frowned. "It just wouldn't be Naruto to hate someone." His hand slowly went from her shoulder to her arm. Temari was down and it was only when she was like this that she would actually let him touch her. "

You know Temari, there is this fine line between love and hate. Sometimes when you really are in love, to the person it feels like hate." Shikamaru took a deep breath. "Because they might have hurt you and you can't accept it. You can't accept it that you still feel something for them."

Temari frowned even deeper. "Shikamaru, it's not fair for them to expel Sakura from Suna or coming near Naruto." He looked at her, pulling her closer to him.

"Maybe, we can do something." She turned to look at him again, staring into his eyes. "It's not impossible for us to bring her back. We would need a good enough excuse to have her here. But first of all, we have to convince Naruto to-" Temari stepped out of his hold and began to walk down the staircase, he groaned. "What are you doing?"

"Asuma needs to be put to bed."

Shikamaru blinked, stunned. "You named him Asuma?"

"…" Temari didn't say anything and before he knew off it, Shikamaru was left on his own.

-

_Suna_ _border, 3 miles_ the sing post saidThe area was full of trees, something that wasn't seen in the middle of the Wind-country. Sakura stepped closer but she noticed Neji remaining still.

"I trust you to leaving the border wouldn't require any of my assistance. I will take my leave" Hyuuga Neji said, coolly.

Sakura turned around and readjusted her bag. She saw this strange look on his face, as if he wanted to say something. Sakura grinned, "Don't worry. Nothing will happen to me. I promised that to Tohru didn't I?" A weak laugh punctuated her remark and Sakura began to walk to the border again.

"I do not know what you have done, but Naruto doesn't attack people without reason. A very good one and we're sure its not because of _relationship_ problems. You've hurt him before, this wouldn't be new." Sakura didn't answer and continued to walk. "I wish that you never came back to Konoha, Haruno-san. You have only brought misfortune to the country."

She still didn't stop. But this did not stem Neji's outpouring of honest thoughts.

"I wish that the Hokage never had fallen so badly in love with you. Of all the women out there he choose you since being a boy…and you didn't return any of it." This time Sakura stopped and growled.

"Neji, how do you expect to know of love? Your wife loves you, stay put with that. Naruto is the Hokage. It's different when he is the Hokage. I cannot just become his lover like that." Sakura breathed in, "And I am not ready for that. Now, I do not expect us to see again. Farewell." When there was no sound in response, she turned her head to glance over her shoulder. But there was no one. Sakura clenched her hands on the bag and turned her head to the road ahead.

Former Sannin of Konoha, Haruno Sakura's form slowly disappeared into the woods. The sun rose over the wind-country, illuminating her form and casting a long dark shadow.

-

1 year later…

-

A/N: stay tuned for the next chapter – I don't know why I feel so evil…

You're welcome to guess how the story will turn out – I read every review, but usually doesn't have time to answer back. Guess, and see if you were actually right about it!

Who left?

Answer: Haruno Sakura.

Only three clues left.

The fighting scene was written by my beta-reader causeIambetta, well, because he IS better than me at fighting scenes, but it needed my approval, and has gotten adjustments here and there – hope you like!

All rights to Kishimoto!


	20. Book 1 Chapter 20

Former Sannin of Konoha, Haruno Sakura's form slowly disappeared into the woods. The sun rose over the wind-country, illuminating her and casting a long dark shadow.

-

1 year later…

-

Neji ran across the fields with his face fully hidden by that awful ANBU mask. He wasn't a real ANBU, but it was definatly necessary for them to hide their faces when they were outside the Suna/Rebel camp. To him it had seemed like an eternity since the Haruno had left…and he couldn't really figure out if it was for the Hokage's own well being or not.

He glanced shortly to the left to see the Kazekage's sister, Temari of the Sand, run gracefully with the Suna-nins at her side. It hadn't surprised him whenever he saw her walk into Shikamaru's tent or him walk into their tent, and hear the noises of lovemaking – if there was one thing Neji wasn't, it was oblivious – that was why he was sent to support the Suna-nins.

Neji turned his gaze back to the road ahead of him. He could feel the sand woman turn her head in his direction, feeling her eyes narrow. Maybe his suspicions had been right, or to be more specific, Naruto had been correct.

The branch cracked underneath him, but he was gone before he could fall with it.

The rumours had been circulating the area for quite some time about a curious group of refugees and criminals, who somehow always managed to stay in a healthy shape. This was strange because they had been attacked several times but almost always came away with few injuries or loses. They had sat up a camp not too far away from the rebel/suna camp.

To be honest, everything seemed a bit too good to be true. It was like the group had managed to get a medic-nin, and not only just a medic-nin, but a damn good one. It was stuff like that Naruto wanted to avoid – groups with suspicious persons or people who might endanger the camp.

However – the rumour had caught the Suna camp's interest, and therefore Naruto had to know why they wanted that exact group – so now Neji was running, very fast …

-

_Her face turned around as she looked up at Itachi hovering above her – a strange glint in his eyes warned her of his intentions. The urge to just close her eyes and let things make its way was tempting – but the red Kyuubi eyes continued to enter her mind._

_Her nails dug into his skin as descended his mouth upon her neck – it was tempting to give up on everything, especially after the turn of events that had just occurred._

_Why had she even lied to Ino? Did she first realise how her emotions might have been when she was forced to leave. She felt like puking at her own mistakes – there was no doubt about it – she had felt so badly in love with the Hokage…but what did it matter now?_

_Her hands slowly went to Itachi's neck, as he moved his mouth to her chin -…_

…_- why was she even here? In this filthy Inn with a dangerous Akatsuki-member. She admitted that maybe it was the alcohol which she might have been drinking a bit too much of, but something told her it was different._

_She traced his hairline on the back of his neck. Perhaps, she had all along been so terribly lonely, regretted the turn of events so much…that she no longer cared in what direction her life took – she was afterall…just a sannin._

_Her hands lay down flat on Itachi's throat. "I forgive you – it isn't your fault" she all of a sudden spoke and before he knew of it, her hands grabbed his throat and turned it to the side hard…_

_-_

The group had mildly said been surprised, but strangely calm when Neji and Temari had arrived along with their ninja-squads. The cloaked refugees had their hands raised into the air, their faces hidden with brown cloaks…

…he activated the Byuukugan, making some of the people in the crowd gasp in surprise. He didn't care though; he was searching for something, which he had to find before Temari did.

The sand woman moved forward and started inspecting the refugees, telling them that they had been invited by the Rokudaime Hokage and the Kazekage to stay in the camp – so that they wouldn't have to run around in this unsafe environment.

He found what he was seeking and with firm arm pushed his way through the crowd and stopped in front of a smaller woman, who had her face mostly covered with a cloak. He frowned deeply and grabbed her by the arm. "tell them to stay calm…and follow us"

The woman tensed under his hold and looked around confused – he must have confused her with someone else, but he tucked unto her and dragged her through the surprised crowd.

Temari glared at his back and motioned the people to come with her, the suna nins surrounding the group to make sure that they didn't get anywhere. However, none of them seemed to be bothered by it, instead they focused on Neji dragging off the rather puzzled woman.

His hand tightened on her arm, noticing that her breath has quickened before she spoke. "I…I am going to get killed now right?"

He snorted. "dream on – we have other things to do with you –" Neji knew she didn't believe him, she had afterall been hunted for a long time. His gaze lingered on her for a while before he turned it back to the woods ahead of him, before she spoke again.

"You didn't have to take the refugees with you – they haven't committed any crimes to you…" he interrupted her, making her unable to continue. "Don't be foolish, the Hokage and the Kazekage are interested in having more people in the camp – especially since there are quite a lot of ninjas within this group"

He pushed her forward harder than before. "That includes you too"

She snarled for the first time and resisted the urge to punch the man. As they continued to walk she felt his hand on her arm loosen. It made her become less angry and followed him slowly. Neji started speaking again. "I have to be honest with you, I regret the decisions we made."

"…" she just looked at the ground, and he knew very well what she was thinking about. "Don't fear for anything, we do not plan to execute you or the group."

His hands softened on her arm and as they walked for many silent hours the refugee camp became visible. It was no surprise to him when he felt her distress and fear; she had a good reason to. He motioned one of the ninjas in his squad to come closer and he did, stepping up right beside Neji.

"Announce to the Hokage that I have found what the Kazekage has been searching for, please make sure that he arrives to the refugee-camp alone." The ninja nodded and ran fast towards the refugee-camp, but suddenly turned in another direction, probably towards the main-camp.

Neji noticed the woman's feature darken at his words and her body tensed in anger. It made him smirk behind the mask and just as he was about to tuck her with him again, Temari appeared at his side with a frown. "I would like to take her now – I have some issues to discuss with her."

The shorter woman could feel the glare being exchanged between the two of them and slowly lowered her head. Temari grabbed her by the arm and away from Neji, who just snorted and retreated back to the other ninjas. Temari glanced at her and looked the other way, the frown still there.

"I have to warn you – the Hokage is not very fond of people like you. He is actually become a bit…hateful after that incident a year ago." The woman flinched slightly at the mention, Temari though just continued. "So I will advise you to keep calm and not say anything about what I will tell you now – that way you will not make him angry"

She looked from side to side making sure Neji wasn't listening. "The Kazekage proposes a deal."

The woman snapped her head up and gazed at Temari. "A deal?" she spoke curiously, and the sand woman nodded and brought her face closer to the woman's, whispering. "He says that he can either help you escape…or take you in as a sand-nin"

The cloaked woman tensed. "Really?"

"Yes, the Hokage probably wouldn't take you in – and the Kazekage is interested in having you on our side. However, be careful – don't say anything that might seem suspicious to the Hokage – okay?"

She nodded and they entered the camp.

-

"Eh! So you think you're so cool! Just because the Hokage likes you!" a young male child's voice echoed through the training spaces right outside the main-camp. His hand holding up the struggling girl by the shirt. She spat at him and he groaned.

"You stupid girl! You're an orphan and your mother is out there probably killed by some Akatsuki member."

Tohru, who was the one being held up, frowned, they were always like that. Envious of her being adopted by the Hokage and her substitute mother being a real-life sannin – she wanted to kick his ass so badly. He smirked.

"You can't even do a henge and still you have a Jounin teaching you – hah, you're just some spoiled kid – can't even defend your-se-" before he could continued, Tohru had managed to hit him in the head with her foot hard, knocking him out. She landed on the ground gracefully and grinned – a habit she had gotten from Naruto.

She placed her hands on her hips. "Oh yeah! You want to see what I can do eh!? Now! Look"

She quickly clapped her hands together and was about to shout a jutsu when a hand touched her shoulder. "Tohru-san … I do not believe it is appropriate to show them your jutsu right? It is after all a secret." The girl glanced over her shoulder and met the usual face of her sensei, Yamato.

She frowned. "eh!? Why not! They shouldn't get away with that – look what they did!" Tohru pointed at her red eye which probably would be blue the next day if Ino didn't take a look at it. He sighed. "Well, fighting isn't always the solution – and you did promise the Hokage that you would keep yourself out of trouble"

She crossed her arms. "Well! You're a good teacher, but Mom was better!"

Yamato frowned and whispered to her. "I told you already Tohru-san, she won't come back – and she cannot teach you how to master your elements as well as I…"

Tohru looked that other way and offended look on her face. "Well, I still need chakra control and perfection of my taijutsu – and Kakashi-sensei isn't as good as mom"

He patted her head. "Well, stop thinking about her all the time and start being a bit more grateful for what the Hokage is doing for you. You have been adopted into the Uzumaki family and that means he is your father."

She pouted and quickly walked pass him, towards the camp. He watched her form disappear with a defeated sigh. The girl had defiantly taken after both Naruto and Sakura when it came to terms of determination and pride. However, something told him she was hitting her teens too…

-

Neji watched as the last of the refugees was escorted into the large guarded tent, and saw Naruto coming towards him. The summer-heat had made him hide his eyes underneath a traditional straw hat, and a cloak around his shoulder. It was easy to notice his tanned skin and whiskers and Neji bowed slightly.

"So – did you find anything?" he spoke in a rather tired voice. Neji frowned by that and nodded his head towards the tent. "I am not sure, but I guess _she_ was the reason why Temari-san was sent to the camp. The refugees have ninjas, but they aren't that amazing – so she has to be the reason."

He could feel Naruto narrow his eyes in anger and then looked at him. "Bring her to me…"

-

_Shikamaru walked around in the newly set camp. It hadn't been that tough to start working on a camp like this. With the amount of refugees from Konoha it was like child's play – he was confident in them winning the war._

_A branch cracked behind him and he turned his head, to see Temari come to him with Asuma on her arm. She wasn't looking at him, but focussed more on the ground underneath her …_

"_Yo" he said tiredly and scratched the back of his neck._

_Black eyes met green as she readjusted their child in her arms. "Hello to you too – so – did you find anything?"_

_He shook his head and looked towards the end of the road. "I tried asking one of the spies from Suna if they had gotten any information about her current where-about" she ended up standing beside him, watching the road she had probably walked on when she left suna._

"_I can't believe it is a month since she walked away – it is like Naruto has changed so much." Shikamaru nodded at her statement. "Yeah – he…has become angrier, especially if it has something to do with her."_

_She didn't look at him when he said that. "Should we tell him about him trying to att-"_

"_No"_

_Temari frowned and Asuma coughed slightly in her arms, distracting Shikamaru from looking on the road and instead started to play with the child. She turned her head to look at him. "I heard something the other day."_

"_hmmm?"_

"_Uchiha Itachi had his neck broken…"_

_His eyes snapped up to her in surprise. "What?"_

_-_

Neji could feel her struggle against him, but his grip was too tight on her arm – he defiantly wouldn't disobey Naruto's orders, especially when it concerned _her_. "Keep calm – nothing is going to happen to you"

She snorted. "Yeah right – I remember the last time I saw him – don't kid me, there is going to happen something to me!" She tried to pull away, he just grabbed her harder towards the clearing. "I can give you two pieces of advice – keep calm and don't say anything that will trigger his anger – got that?"

The woman pouted and her face remained hidden underneath the cloak. His eyes wandered slightly to her chest, but the cloak hid anything that might be interesting and he looked the other way. However, soon after his eyes wandered back and lingered, his hand lessened on her arm.

Soon after they entered the clearing and true to his word, there stood the hokage with his arms crossed. Neji could feel the woman soften at the sight of him, and yet the feeling of distrust and anger hung in the air around her too. He let go of her arm and stepped back into the forest.

Naruto turned to her. "What are you doing here?" he asked with the smallest hint of anger.

"…"

He narrowed his eyes at her and spoke again. "What are you doing here?"

"I am not here willingly Hokage-sama" her words made him sigh and he started pacing.

"I am not really interested in you kunoichi. However, it seems that the Kazekage was quite the opposite of me when it came to that – I would like you to tell me what his interest is in you."

She crossed her arms and looked the other way. "Well – Hokage-sama, I would say that the Kazekage is definatly more popular than you, after what I heard around the world."

There was some kyuubi aura in the air.

"Oh really? I wouldn't talk to loudly Kunoichi. I have heard rumours about you too…"

He could see the smirk underneath the cloak and wondered why she hadn't bothered revealing her face to him yet. His frowned deepened and he had to control the urge to actually show his anger. "Now Hokage – it is not rumours I have heard, those are definatly peoples' opinions."

"Kunoichi…what are those rumours I have heard about Uchiha Itachi then? I have to say – it is surely very suspiciously that he broke his neck – you have to be very grateful that Kisame managed to bring him to a doctor soon enough to repair some of the damage. It is indeed very rare that someone survives that – and he was nake-"

"Shut up! I don't even know what you want from me!?" her hand shot into the air, pointing at him. "You ask me all those questions that have nothing to do why I am here!"

She could feel him tense at this, as if she was proving every god damn theory he had developed. With a swift move of her feet she walked in a fast pace towards the road, but Neji stopped her. His hand had grabbed her by the shoulder, keeping her in place.

"I didn't give you permission to leave Kunoichi" Naruto spoke from behind them, his arms crossed and the anger clear in his voice. He wasn't sure that the emotional display his eyes performed went unnoticed by her a few seconds ago.

"I do not belong to you – " she started, but was interrupted.

"But if you are so anxious to leave, then show me your face – kunoichi"

With a hiss she turned away from Neji and walked towards Naruto, a hand on the edge of her cloak before she pushed it away in anger. His eyes flickered for a second when the familiar pink hair and green eyes became visible.

There was no mistaken it…

… She had hardened again…

"I will never come back to you! Hokage-sama!"

He looked down at her, his face unreadable. "I do not want you to either …Sakura"

Sakura resisted the urge to punch him and just turned around and ran past Neji, only to have Temari come to her side, dragging her away from the refugees and to the camp. It made Naruto frown.

Neji turned to him, waiting for his orders.

Naruto readjusted his cloak and spoke. "Your new mission will be to keep an eye on Sakura in the camp – tell me everything she might tell you or her surroundings…"

Neji nodded, seeming rather…happy for the mission. It didn't go unnoticed by Naruto and he couldn't help but pity Hinata in that moment. However, there was no time for drama – this was after all war.

-

Chapter 20 – hope you'll like it. This takes place a year after Sakura left the wind-country. Now – many of you might be turned off by the flashback with Itachi and Sakura, but of course, it is part of the story and you can flame me for it…haha…

I answer questions if you give me any, because I can't really come up with any myself. Anyway, I am going to Oxford on Monday, and I am so excited – so if anyone lives there, then come and say hi XD hahah…

Chapter 21 – going to be like this – the exciting parts will either begin in chapter 22 or 23 – hehe…

Now? What is Tohru's elements?

Clues: (it is so easy!)  
She is related to Tsunade, and the Shodaime.   
Yamato is her private teacher.  
Tohru though isn't very good at henge and chakra-control, and is better at taijutsu and her elements – heheh – you can't be good at everything.


	21. Book 1 Chapter 21

Kabuto walked towards the Hokage-office with stern footsteps. His face drawn into a deep frown as he slowly cracked his hands in an annoyed manner. This rumour would either be their rescue or their death – it all depended on the situation. He opened the door and Orochimaru looked up. His face was as always hidden behind a cloth, but the usual smirk of his could be sensed.

"oh? Kabuto – what brings you here?" he spoke calmly and leaned back into the chair. Kabuto looked from side to side, making sure there was no one that would be able to listen. When seeing there was no one he stepped up to the table and spoke. "you remember your plan right?"

Orochimaru snorted and looked at him. "of course I do…"

Kabuto nodded, as if wanting him to tell him the plan all over again. The snake-man closed his eyes and started all over again. "first thing we must do it convince the council that there is need for a new hokage – kick Naruto off. Second, gain the village's trust, turn them against the foolish boy. Third, take his most precious person, if capable turn the person against him, and then kill the person in front of him." His mouth turned into a wide grin. "lastly – destroy Konoha"

Kabuto nodded. "yes, and how far have we come in the plan" Orochimaru looked over his shoulder to the city, seeing the people walking around chatting calmly – feeling safe in the arms of their Hokage. He grinned. "I believe the second stage is nearly done, people are getting too secure here. I believe they feel more secure now than they did with that Naruto-runt"

He then looked back at Kabuto, the evening sun illuminating the room. "but why the rush then?"

"a precious person right?"

Orochimaru nodded at what Kabuto said, which made him continue.

"we have that girl he adopted, Uzumaki Tohru…but…I believe she has connections to the Akatsuki and as far as the rumours go, they plan on having her as a future member. This small detail makes it both insane and risky to even try and capture. You already have Akatsuki on your back already" Orochimaru narrowed his eyes at him and motioned him to continue.

"However – I believe…we might have another opportunity to hurt naruto-kun. I do believe he has more than one precious person" this caught the nanadaime's interest and he leaned forward. "Haruno Sakura has arrived in the Suna/Rebel camp…" Kabuto nearly whispered.

At this Orochimaru laughed loudly in relief and ecstatic. "Marvellous! Marvellous! Truly !"

His grinned widened and he laughed even louder. "finally! I can get my revenge." He looked at Kabuto, behind the white cloth the smirk could clearly be seen. "that kid took away the sharingan-eyes from me. He took away most of my suna army with our attack a few years ago. He has almost destroyed sound to a certain extent. The yondaime took away Konoha from me, he took away my chance of being Hokage…but since there is no Yondaime anymore."

Orochimaru stood up and looked out of the window, down at the city below. "…why not let the revenge hit his legacy?"

"I shall begin planning the events on how we shall capture Haruno Sakura." Orochimaru grinned at Kabuto's words and answered. "please do."

-

_Naruto ran and ran and ran and ran. To him is seemed as if he wasn't reaching a destination. His hand was clutching his left eye, which bled furiously – he couldn't see with it. He stumbled and hit the ground hard, biting his lip hard. This made him spit out blood – he couldn't let himself fall now, he had to see Tsunade – he had to!_

_He jumped up and ran, the streets full of blood, but no dead bodies – only blood. _

_It was as if the street continued endlessly, there was nothing coming near, and the hokage-tower still hung over the red city depressively. There was no hokage, but he needed to see her – he had to!_

_With that he finally managed to run fast enough to reach the gates. His left eye was hurting from the pain, and he felt like fainting, but he couldn't- it was impossible. Then he looked for the first time – before him lay thousand of bodies and his right eye widened. Kakashi, Shikamaru, Lee, Tenten, Jirayia, Neji, Hinata – Tohru. _

_Naruto stepped back, terrified, but none the less, this only made him run faster. Each step smashing against the stone-floor. Twenty year old, and he had managed to kill half of the sound-army in one stroke. As if he was forgetting the unfortunate events he opened the door to the room Tsunade was in, making it fall to the floor. "I did it! I defeated them!"_

_However …there was no Tsunade – not even her body was visible, instead a lone figure sat in the middle of the room…sobbing._

_Her pink hair could never be mistaken, and so could her red dress neither. In her arms she clutched a figure against her chest, but Naruto couldn't see who it was. He stood there paralyzed. Sakura was never there – she was travelling…_

_A small murmur could be heard in the room. "Sasuke-kun…Sasuke-kun…"_

_Naruto hissed as the pain returned in his eyes, but it didn't make her react – only her murmur and sobs was an answer. His eye widened when the figure in her arms slowly rose and looked at him over her shoulder. There was no mistaking it…_

_Itachi…_

_Itachi's arms snaked themselves around her form, and held her close. The sharingan shining brightfully in the dark room, before he smirked and spoke. "mine…"_

_Naruto readied his fist, just about to strike…_

"_monster…monster…you killed Sasuke-kun…" her weak voice spoke._

_-_

Naruto sat up in his bed quickly, his eyes wide. His breath was quick and he examined his tent for any intruders. The sun had yet to rise and the tent was quiet. The occasional steps of ninjas walking past was the only sound that could be heard. Naruto bend forward, burying his face into his hands. There were no tears…

…but so much else.

"_monster…monster…you killed Sasuke-kun"_

Naruto threw the bed sheet away by the memory and marched up to the table in the middle. He placed his hand on top of the hard wooden surface, his face drawn into a tight grimace of pain. He brought a hand to his left eye…

"_let me heal it…"_

"_monster…monster…"_

Naruto snorted and gave a small ironic laugh. "wouldn't surprise me if she actually _felt_ that way." His hand clenched on the table. "it was good that I kept her away…" even when he spoke, there was still the smallest hint of doubt.

-

Sakura stood surprised, to be honest, surprised could not even cover the feelings that rushed through her body. She blinked and looked at Temari shortly, who just nodded and then back at Gaara who sat before her. "excuse me?"

The Kazekage sat emotionless as usual, his hands folded as he watched the pinkhaired woman. The hood had fallen and revealed her face fully. It was clear to see that she must've spent many months in the dessert of suna, her skin tanned from the sharp sun.

"you heard me right Haruno Sakura"

He could see that the dirt was cleaned from her face, apparently Temari had allowed the girl to take a bath and eat some food before showing her to him. It didn't help that his sister had told him about Naruto's meeting with Sakura, but he would have to deal with it.

"I have asked you to join us, since it would be very beneficial for the camp to have a medic with your skills. Also, I have to say that Tohru has missed you, and you must finish the training of the girl."

She didn't know what to say.

"You will work under suna-orders, and will be a suna-nin until either you or I decide otherwise. You will be working on your own most of the time, and I will not interfere with your private-life or anything like that." Sakura didn't know Gaara would be able to speak that much, but the monotone never left his voice. "I will give you missions from time to time…"

The room went silent.

"do you accept?"

-

Shizune was sitting at the desk in the hallway before the hokage-office. Kabuto and the Hokage had been discussing for over two hours now, inside herself she hoped that either one of them would die from talking that much – but it was wish-thinking.

The door opened and Iruka entered, surprised to see Shizune alone in the hallway. Usually it would be full of people, and that kid Kabuto would be there too, taunting her. It had come as a surprise to the village when the Hokage had announced that Kabuto had redeemed himself, and wanted to become a part of the village again.

It had not taken people a lot of time to accept that, especially because of the chaos of having Naruto running away. Shizune looked up at Iruka and smiled. "hey, I am almost ready can you wait a few minutes?"

Iruka smiled and nodded, and as he did that, the door to the room opened and Kabuto exited. He looked up at Iruka and gave him a glare. "hello" the young medic nin spoke. They stood for a while, exchanging their glares, until Shizune spoke. "ah! Done! Ready to go?" she said, directed to Iruka.

Kabuto raised an eyebrow and looked at them. "where are you going?"

Iruka picked up Shizune's bag and swung it over his shoulder, before turning his face to Kabuto. "nothing much, me and Shizune-san are going on a date, she must've told you so"

The grey-haired youth looked surprised and turned his face to look at Shizune. "you have?"

She shrugged her shoulders and grabbed Iruka by the arm. "well – company can be good once in a while."

And both of them left the Hokage-tower, but not without having the suspicious glare of Kabuto's on their walking backs.

-

Sakura yawned as she walked through the many connected tents. The kazekage's tent or the suna tent, where all the big meetings were held, was a huge complex with connected tents. They were white and the hallways that connected the tents were covered with white sheets as a ceiling, to protect them against the sun and the rain. Temari was walking beside her and looked at her, smiling.

"well, congratulations with your choice Sakura – I believe you will enjoy your stay here."

Sakura turned to her and readjusted her cloak, admiring the work done with the tents. "it is really an amazing work you have done here, so what is it with this camp?"

Temari pushed her lips forward as if thinking and slowly began. "well – this is the main-camp. The Kages reside here and it is also the camp with most people and most protection. Of course there have been attempts on infiltration, but with Naruto and Gaara here, they just died just like flies." She pointed towards the north. "to the south is a refugee-camp, that is the camp you entered when you arrived, before you were transferred here. The camp is mainly holding refugees we consider letting into the camp, most of the people you travelled with will either be scattered to other small camps or the major camp, which we are in now."

"the major camp is devided into a smaller Konoha-area and a larger suna-area. You are going to live in the suna-area since you are a suna-nin now. Naruto doesn't have a larger connected tent like this, he only has one – and so does all the other Konoha-ninjas, who have fled from Konoha."

Temari turned left into a smaller 'hallway' and Sakura followed. "it is in these suna-tents that the larger meetings are held. Whenever that occurs, you will not interrupt and try not to run into Naruto when you are here. If Gaara wants you with him to the meetings there are always lunches afterwards, which you have to join – get that?"

Sakura nodded and Temari opened the opening to one of the smaller tents. "there is a huge dinning tent in the middle of the camp, where everybody eats – the food is delivered from the country we are in now, so we cannot run short – even if we do, we have a lot of other ways to get food, so you eat as much as you want" Sakura blinked when she noticed the nicely furnished tent.

Temari looked proud and placed her hands on her hips. "we may be at war, but the least we can do is furnish our tents properly." It made the pink-haired kunoichi raise an eyebrow when she noticed the dressing table and a bed with madras, it made her grim in away. "isn't this too much?"

It caused the sandwoman to laugh. "hah – you're in the kazekage's tent Sakura, nothing is too much here – war or not – be grateful with what you get. Anyway, I have to go, Asuma needs to be fed."

With those words she left the smaller tent and Sakura was alone. The bag on her shoulder was dumped on the madras and Sakura looked at herself in the mirror.

She needed to cut her hair….

-

_Naruto lay in the cottage still, his arm hanging loosely over Sakura's sleeping form. Her head was buried into his neck, his eyes watching how her mouth slowly breathed out the air. Temptation he knew it was, and yet he couldn't stop himself, so he kissed her. It wasn't desperate or longing. She didn't wake up, but a small smile claimed her lips._

_-_

Neji looked up from the book in his hand, Hinata entering the tent. She didn't say anything and took her overcoat off, it was always like that between them. He would be quiet and she would be quiet…it was no secret that they wasn't talking well.

Hinata sat down on the bed and began to cry, it wasn't one of those heart wrenching cries, but it was none the less a cry. Neji placed his book on the table and moved over so he could sit behind her. His arms went around her waist, hugging her. The smaller woman turned around and buried her face into the crock of his neck.

Neji had to convince Naruto to not let Hinata work in the medic-clinic for a while; it was a day to day reminder of her sister's death.

"don't worry…it will be over soon." He muttered.

Perhaps it was very stereotypical for him, but this was war, and in war everybody turned soft around one another.

-

_Ohuhru rose her head to meet the face of Deidara, surprise was written across her face, but was soon replaced by a gentle smile. She stood up. "Hello Deidara-san – what can I do for you?"_

_He eyed her still flat stomach, but there was no mistaken the fact that she was with child. "where is your husband?"_

_Ohuhru stood up fully, her hands full of dirt since she had been doing garden-work. "Orochimaru-sama commanded that they were to attack Konoha, I guess he'll be back in a few days."_

_Deidara watched her smiling face, gentle, but that wasn't what caught his fascination. It was as if her face were made to perfection, not a single flaw – and yet…in this world all she could find was a husband who couldn't evens stay faithful._

"_if your husband one day should disappear? What would you do?"_

_Ohurhu looked at him surprised again and raised an eyebrow. "Deidara-san, that is a most inappropriate question, why should I even consider what I should do if it is not the current case?"_

_Deidara frowned and the two became silent, before she once again spoke, but gentler._

"_but…if me and my husband should disappear I want you to take care of my child" her hand went to her stomach. "find her a new good mother and a new good father…that is all I would ever want my child, I want my child to have a family…and love its family."_

_Deidara watched her…_

_-_

Deidara stood before the former house of Sakura's. The walls were cracking here and there and it seemed as if the rock ninjas had been searching every corner of the house. It was small and it probably housed a lot of Tohru's fond memories.

He walked around the grounds and found to his surprise a small memorial tomb, probably in honour of Sakura's former team-mate.

It had come as a surprise to the Akatsuki when Itachi had had his neck broken, luckily he had survive. It was not by luck Deidara admitted, but by skill. The event had intensified Itachi's hunt for Sakura and the Akatsuki had become sure that he looked upon her as a source of power. No one had before managed to bring him so close to death as she, so it must've been transfixing.

Deidara smiled fondly when he saw a small doll lying discarded in the house. It was one of Ohuhru's gifts to her daughter, he would bring it back to her…but now he needed to find the Tuschikage – he had a business deal to seal with him.

-

The small black-haired boy looked up from his father's desk. The man who stood before him looked like a shark and had a huge sword on his back. "I would like to buy some of your medical herbs" he spoke in an annoyed manner, the boys father didn't flinch at all.

"of course" he looked down at the seven year old boy, who stared transfixed at the sharkman. "go and pick up the herbs" the dark-haired boy nodded and ran into the store.

He looked up surprised when his older brother smiled down at him, only five years between them. "hey – so what are you going to pick up for dad today?"

The boy didn't answer and picked up the herbs and ran back to his father, who took it gracefully as if he had done it a thousand times. "here you go sir – and don't worry about payment, it is free…" his father didn't shake, but he knew that it would be dangerous to ask for payment with this man.

The blue haired shark man just groaned. "Name's Kisame and here is your money" he placed the money on the table and looked down at the small boy. "hmmm…you know boy, you remind me of my partner's diseased brother" with those words he exited the shop, and the boy's father looked down at him.

"I wonder if it is the same boy Sakura-san referred to also?"

-

A/N: it seems that there are some confusion about what is going on, I will try my best to clear that out.

One year has passed since Sakura left. In that year a war has erupted between the sound and the rock. Naruto and Gaara has won land in the fire-country and it is hard to control all that land from the Suna-capital, therefore they have placed an enormous camp in the middle of that piece of land. Konoha doesn't fight Naruto and those he has with him! Instead it is Sound and rock that fights instead. (that was twisted) Anyway, Naruto and Gaara have been living in that camp for a good year now – Sakura though, has been travelling around and met a group of refugees, she has been travelling with them ever since.

Gaara after a year figured out that Sakura must be in that group, because the group miraculous never had any wounds, as if they had a good medic with them. He sent Temari out to get Sakura to him, because he was interested in having her at his side and because she might have information he could use. Also because Tohru has shown signs of missing Sakura too, so Gaara thought that Sakura would be a good add to the camp.

Naruto got very suspicious of why Gaara sent out his ninjas to a small refugee group and this made him sent out Neji to retrieve whatever seemed suspicious. Neji found Sakura. He brought Sakura back to the refugeecamp outside the larger camp, here he brought her to Naruto. Naruto wanted to know what Gaara wanted from her, Sakura of course didn't know – they yell at each other etc.

After that Gaara made his proposal to Sakura, which means she is at this point a Suna-nin.

I don't know if this helped **anyone!**


	22. April fools joke!

Due to dissapointing amount of reviews I have recieved to the story, I have decided to delete this story and never return to I put so much work in each single chapter, and yet I only get an estimated 10 reviews per chapter, even though it is on the alert list of 100 persons. You dissapoint me very much - however, here is what I would've ended the story with -

-

"Naruto!"

"Sakura"

Sakura reached out to grab his hand, but he slapped it away. "how could you..." he mumured. "how could you do this to me?" she gazed at him sadly and looked the other way.

"I can't believe it - every...medical sciene would never be able to explain this Naruto" she whispered. He brought a hand to his stomach. "all these years...and...I've been a woman?"

"I'm sorry Naruto - I should've told you before - how can I possibly make it up?"

"I don't want to see you again" he growled angrilly. "I've never loved you anyway! I have loved Hinat- no - since I am a woman now, that must mean I loved Sasuke! and I killed him!"

a voice came from the other end of the room. "killed who?" both Naruto and Sakura turned to see who it was. "Sasuke!!?" they both screamed outloud, the usual calm and collected face of their companion glinted in the room. "yes - that is me"

"...and I am the father of your future child Naruto" Naruto blinked longingly. "Sasuke! I knew all along! finally we can be together"

Sasuke nodded. "yes, I've never liked women anyway - did you see me in the manga? I was very comfortable having a naked dude standing behind me - but when Karin came I showed her away, and she was fully clothed"

and they lived happily ever after!

fin!

...and if you haven't guessed already.

**_APRIL FOOLS!!!_**

Of course I won't end this story! and I am satisfied with my reviews XD! hah!

This chapter will be deleted later tonight!


	23. Book 1 Chapter 23

The new tent of Sakura's was dimly lit in the morning sun, and she had still not been able to find rest. Her thumb stroked the cool surface of her new Suna-headband. It was different from her Konoha-headband, which lay in the dark end of her bag pack. It probably would stay there for a long time to come.

Her eyes scanned every corner of the headband, and she felt rather different about this it. She had Konoha and Rock headbands previously. The Konoha-headband had made her proud. The rock-headband only brought her regret. This Suna headband, she couldn't quite figure out what it should bring her.

Sakura turned around and swung her legs over the bed and stepped over to the table with a mirror. It was strange to live so wealthy in a camp. Especially in times of war. Her green eyes were reflected in it, and she could see how her usually shining pink hair looked dull. With a swift move of her hand she placed the headband around her head, a routine practice. She tightened the knob underneath her hair.

Then she just sat still, her hand gone back to lap.

It was hard not to think about what she left behind and the thought alone made Sakura close her eyes. She could hear people beginning to wake up in the surrounding tents – there were not many people in the area where she lived. Most of them were out on missions, and she was still kept within the camp. She then heard Temari's voice outside the tent. "Sakura! Gaara wants you to go with him to a meeting! So you better hurry!"

This made Sakura open her eyes. As she looked in the mirror, she could see Tsunade stand by the opening of the tent. With a small murmur she heard the former Hokage speak. "Perhaps you should see this as an opportunity to redeem yourself"

Sakura looked thoughtful for a second and then stood up…

-

Shizune turned her head to look at Iruka, her hand went into her hair. It had grown quite a lot, reaching her shoulders now. He noticed this and smiled. "If it bothers you, then it might be a good idea to cut your hair."

She looked startled and turned her gaze to her hand in her hair. "Eh? Uhm – it …doesn't really bother me, I am just not used to have long hair you see."

Iruka smiled. "I liked the shorter hair better too."

-

Neji entered the room with Sakura's belongings gracefully. His white eyes had the Byukugan activated, making sure that there was no one near that knew of his presence. Neji frowned slightly at the messiness of her room – she had only been there for a week and yet all of her belongings were scattered. Most of her clothes were draped over chairs randomly as if she had been in a hurry.

He moved around, searching every corner, until he saw a small bag of hers, hidden underneath her bed. Neji took it and quickly searched through it with his eyes.

A book, with the title 'Apples' – nothing interesting.

The usual bandages that would be found with a medic.

An old headband from Konoha.

Another…one.

His eyes stopped searching when he saw the headband. Shining light to the metal piece of it, he saw the mark of the rock-village. What was this? He smirked slightly. However, that wasn't the most interesting. Underneath the headband lay a jewellery of some sort. He narrowed his eyes slightly to see what it was – as far as he knew, he had seen these sorts of jewelleries before.

His eyes widened slightly.

It was an Uchiha jewellery.

This had to be investigated further.

-

Naruto looked at the Hyuuga leader sitting on the floor before him, his hand holding the reports given to him by Sai and Ino. Those two had during that time of one year, become Naruto's favourite spies. Ino was the one reporting back, while Sai stayed inside the walls of Konoha. Naruto turned to look at the paper.

"I have news from Konoha concerning the Hyuugas, Hinata"

Hinata looked at him and stroked her hands against each other. "It is bad news, Naruto-sama?"

He turned his head towards another piece of paper. "Yes – it seems that Orochimaru's plan is starting to be successful." She narrowed her eyes in distress. "What does that mean?"

"The branch-members have cut off cooperation with Freedom forces. They have turned to Orochimaru now, which means that our Hyuuga faction can not recruit the majority of the clan." Naruto yanked a hand through his hair. "It will be harder to fight with the Hyuugas against each other. The caged bird seal alone will cause mass deaths."

Hinata looked at the ground. "We will make it, won't we?" at this his blue eyes gazed down upon her, before he smiled. "Sure we will."

However, Naruto couldn't help but see the flicker of giving up in her eyes, which made him sit down on his knees. The smile was a fake one, but people had always had a hard time figuring out when he smiled for real anyways. "It may seem as if the tide is turning now, but we can do it Hinata. You know it!"

Naruto's hand patted hers softly and Hinata turned her head to look at him. "With you, Naruto-sama, then we will," she said with conviction.

He grinned. "Hinata, Hinata, it is Naruto to you – how many times do I have to tell you?" his hands held hers softly. It always seemed to cheer her up when he was physically close to her, and Naruto needed Hinata to stay strong in time of war. Neji was too busy doing work for him anyway, so that meant he wouldn't be there for her.

"As long as Konoha-folks stick together here – then it will work out."

The opening to the tent flipped to one side and Tohru entered, smiling. "Father! You know w-…oh…hey aunt Hinata." The smile on Tohru's face fell slightly at the sight of Hinata and Naruto sitting like that. Naruto had told her before that he and Hinata were only very close friends. But to Tohru, it seemed as if Hinata wanted more out of the relationship – even if she was married to…

"Oh, hey Tohru-chan? How did the training go?"

"Fine, Aunt Hinata. You know – I'll just come back later – I have to retrieve something! See ya!"

Naruto was about to stand up. "Wait – there is something I have to tell you."

Tohru waved. "It is alright – I'll go and see her today!" then she exited the tent.

Hinata looked from Naruto to the tent door. "It is Sakura-san isn't it?" Naruto frowned slightly.

"Yeah."

-

"Orochimaru's plan so far, according to Naruto-sama's spies briefly is this: Get Konoha, gain the people of Konoha to trust him and then afterwards destroy Konoha." The suna-nin spoke loudly.

"We plan to temporarily stop fighting in the winter-time. During that time we will train and regain forces for the last and major attack on Konoha in spring. We must succeed at this. Medics need to be top tuned and so do our troops. Kazekage-sama, is there anything else?"

The Kazekage looked up from his papers and then to Sakura, who was too busy skimming through her own papers to notice. However, that wasn't what caught his interest, a few seats ahead, Hyuuga Neji sat and stared at her. Perhaps Naruto had gone far enough to actually spy at her even in the camp – he turned to the Suna-nin.

"Do we know anything new of note about Orocohimaru's plans?"

"No, Kazekage-sama, but the spies are currently investigating. Kabuto and Orochimaru had a very mysterious meeting a week ago. We plan to figure out what they have spoken about. However, without the cooperation of the Hyuugas it will become difficult to retrieve such info."

There was silence for a while.

Sakura closed her eyes and rubbed her temple. She had the feeling that she would be on the run soon.

-

"_Sasuke-kun!"_

_His hand went limp in hers, and one word was spoken before he closed his eyes. "Itachi…"_

_-_

The dinner-tent was loud and busy as always. Sakura, who had only been there for a week at most, was still amazed by the amount of people present in the tent. The table she sat at was small, and she was the only one sitting there. A person stepped up in front of her, on the opposite side of the table. The tray he held in his hand was put down a little louder than normal, to announced his presence.

Sakura looked up confused, obviously startled by it and met the face of Hyuuga Neji. "Is there anything I can help you with?" she spoke a bit annoyed.

Without a reply he sat down and eyed her, which made her raise an eyebrow suspiciously in return. Neji's grey eyes then turned down to her untouched food and then up at Sakura again. "Wanted to take this chance to catch up, Haruno-san"

"...With what?" she poked her meat with her chopsticks in a bored fashion. "Don't you have other stuff to do? Like ...doing important missions for the Hyuugas or so?"

Neji began to eat his lunch slowly. His gaze rested more on her than on the food itself. Sakura narrowed her eyes as if trying to figure out what was going on, when he spoke.

"The Hyuuga's are mostly scattered or in Konoha"

"...What about the Rokudaime then? Don't you work for him too?" Sakura continued. He swallowed his food and drank a bit of his water, before eying her, speaking once more.

"We were once comrades, yes?"

Sakura sighed. "That is nearly ten years ago"

"We are fighting together again, Haruno-san"

Neji could clearly see the annoyed look on her face when she responded. "I fight for Suna and I fight on my own too. I do not believe I fight with you," this made him raise an eyebrow.

"You fight for _your own?_" When he spoke, she detected a small flicker, in his grey eyes, which wasn't there, when she spoke about Suna.

"...Of course I do so" Sakura narrowed her eyes even more. "Gaara didn't assign me to carry out missions with teams. He depends on me doing the missions on my own"

"Hmph" at this Neji took some more food and swallowed it slowly. "We have often heard of your travels"

Sakura looked down on her food, her voice clearly annoyed. "Oh really?"

"Bane of Akatsuki, the Healer Haruno" when he spoke a small smirk made its way to his lips. "Quite a grandiose name, Haruno-san"

"...I didn't know you were the type that listens to rumours, Neji-san" Sakura brought a small shrimp to her mouth and began to chew.

"A ninja must keep aware of all the going-ons, especially during the war" with a smirk he leaned unto one arm, staring at her with curiosity. "So is it true you have killed three Akatsuki on your own?"

"..." Neji eyed her steely when she didn't respond. Sakura's eyes narrowed in annoyance as she muttered. "Dead people are dead people"

Neji's eyes widened a bit, as his curiosity got the better of him. "Some die harder than others, Sakura-san"

She looked down at her food, eating some more. "Depends on the situation"

At that he looked down on his own food. "There is no reason for animosity' His smirk widened slightly. "I 'm quite an ... admirer...of your exploits"

Sakura looked up, surprise written in her face, yet the hint of her annoyance still lingered. "..._Really_?" she then smirked, and her voice dripped with sarcasm. "For a moment there I thought you were trying to get information out of me"

He returned her look in a blank fashion "We have information on you, more than _you_ know"

"Of course you have" she muttered, while eating more of her food. "But you want more, that's why you spy on me" her mouth curled into a smirk. "So there must be something you want to know _badly_"

"I want to hear it from you personally. It is accepted that Haruno Sakura is the strongest kunoichi alive. A professional curiosity, you can understand" he raised an eyebrow and smirked.

"...I do not believe so" her chopsticks caught another mushroom. "Even I am a mere mortal Hyuuga Neji"

"There are those who are above even the fates" he leaned in, shortening the distance between them. This close up, Sakura could see that he was eager to know something.

"How did you do it?" he asked. "Itachi…_How?_" his voice no longer monotone, but instead sounding desperate and demanding.

Sakura glared at him, but didn't respond. She chewed slightly on the mushroom, before looking the other way offended. "If you know so much about me as you say - then there is no need for me to tell you"

Neji leaned back and reseted himself, eyeing her carefully. "What about the member from lightning country?"

"..." Another shrimp. "Dead people are dead people" Sakura muttered again.

"Hmph" he drank some more of his water. "You see me as Naruto-sama's messenger. I am more than that Haruno-san"

"What else should you be?" Sakura spoke with a slightly ironic tone.

Neji's eyes narrowed in anger. "The next in line"

"We have never been more than acquaintances" she all of a sudden spoke.

"..." She looked thoughtful for a short moment.

"Hyuuga Neji, I believe that you should step carefully, whatever line it is you're next in"

He smirked. "Perhaps you and I should have a spar. To catch up further" his hand gracefully pointed at the hand holding her chopsticks. "I wish to see your fabled strength for myself"

Sakura turned to look at him, an eyebrow raised. "...For what purpose?" Her hand with the chopsticks lifted and she pointed them at him as if to lecture "I do not fight to catch up. Unlike you" she turned her gaze the other way, "I fight to _survive_"

"I see" Neji gazed down at his now finished food.

"..." She glanced at him. "What have you been told about me?"

The corners of his lips turned up slightly, in an unbidden fashion. "Our dinners are almost finished, we may continue this elsewhere"

"..." She looked at him annoyed. "I am not done with my dinner yet"

"But mine is"

"Then why are you still here?" Sakura's lips turned into a smirk.

Neji's eyes narrowed and his voice turned cold. "It would do for you to learn courtesy next time we talk, Haruno"

She raised an eyebrow mockingly. "I am fine the way it is"

Neji stood up and didn't bother to bid Sakura a farewell as he left the tent. Sakura followed him with her eyes narrowed. There was something very suspicious about Neji.

_-_

Naruto rubbed his forehead lightly; Rin stared at him as he did so. "Do you sleep well Naruto-sama?" she softly said, it was as if she really didn't see him. Rin always seemed eager to see him act light-headed and careless. It was as if she saw someone else reflected in his persona. He gazed at her when she spoke – he looked the other way, towards the entrance of his tent.

It was his weekly medical check-up, and Rin had personally assigned herself to do that job. Her hands rested on his naked back as she examined him. "Naruto-sama, do you sleep well? Your body seem tired and all"

There was silence for a few minutes.

"Rin-san…do you have anything that can cure nightmares?"

The older woman looked at him and then back to his back. "Nightmares are not something you can cure with medical jutsus –" he groaned as she said that. "nightmares are suppressed emotions Naruto-sama. It is something you must figure out on your own – why you dream what you do."

His gaze returned to his lap and he folded his hands together. "what is it you dream Naruto-sama? Perhaps I can help clearing it" he shook his head, "no thanks Rin-san, it doesn't matter"

He felt her hands slowly move from his lower back to his shoulders. "you know – I had nightmares too once."

Naruto didn't say anything in reply.

"it was always about Obito…" Rin became a bit quiet before speaking again. "they weren't the same, the dreams – but it was always about me being too late to save him. I was always too late – that was when I realised that…my problem was that I couldn't accept that we had failed him."

He could feel her chakra begin to change as the regret clearly entered her voice. "we lost him…because of me. I don't know how long I blamed myself. However – then I realised"

"Obito wouldn't have wanted me to be like this. He would've wanted me to be happy – be the best medic-nin I could." Her hands disappeared from his back. "aaah – we're done. Naruto-sama, make sure that you rest okay?"

He gazed at the ground, and it made her look at him worriedly. "Naruto-sama?"

"….I dream…about Tsunade…" he murmured.

"about the day…four years ago…where she died. You know – she didn't die heroicly. She was sick – very sick. Shizune told me she had gotten an infection from an ill patient, who also had died. The infection couldn't be cured…" Rin turned towards him and gazed at the thirteen year younger boy before her. He had been through so much more than anyone else – and yet…he managed to stay upbeat. She spoke. "it happens that medical-ninjutsu can't cure everything…that is how life is"

"…"

She smiled. "What we have to do, in life, is to forgive, move on, but never forget those we left behind" Rin closed her eyes. "I wasn't the one who suffered the most when Obito died – Kakashi did. He was the great jounin at the time; he believes he failed us…"

-

"_Monster…monster…you killed Sasuke-kun"_

_-_

"…I couldn't have done anything. I knew that – I couldn't have saved Obito with my hands…he was already gone by then. Kakashi was the one who Obito sacrificed himself for." Rin smiled sadly. "…"

Naruto looked up at the ceiling. "Rin-san…"

"hm?" she opened her eyes and looked at him.

"I run towards the Hokage-tower, to see Tsunade. Every time I hope that she is alive, that she is smiling and waiting for me. However – she isn't the one in there…" he voice was low. "I see Haruno Sakura instead…sobbing…cradling a body while she speaks _Sasuke-kun, Sasuke-kun_." He closed his eyes as if trying to create an image. "But…she isn't cradling Sasuke. Instead it is Uchiha Itachi, who tells me she is his…I don't get it…"

Rin smiled. "Perhaps…Naruto-sama, you are afraid that she blames you. You are perhaps afraid that the reason she constantly leaves is because of you and what you have done" Naruto opened his eyes again and looked at her, before frowning. "Why should that scare me?"

"…." She looked thoughtful for a second.

"you don't want Uchiha Itachi to take her do you? You don't want the Akatsuki to take her…you don't want her to die…right?"

His blue eyes became distant and he looked like he was in deep thought, before he shook his head. Rin watched as he put on his shirt again, looking extremely troubled. She spoke again. "Don't be scared…"

"…it is just a dream right?"

Naruto looked at her shortly, before leaving his tent.

-

"Orochimaru is on the move! Get the troops ready – we're going to attack!" a voiced echoed through the streets. "all ninjas prepare for attack! The medics do as they usually do! Move people, move!"

Sakura looked from right to left; Temari had already found her fan and was ready to leave. "Sakura, you stay here in the camp! You haven't been set into a battle-team yet, and the medics will probably need you!" the pink-haired kunoichi looked up. "eh – what? I can fight too!"

The sand-nin turned to look at her disapprovingly. "someone has to take care of the camp while we're away. Remember, there are children here too, who needs protection – and we need the best medics to heal those who return. Remember that. Untill then, you will have to do what I say. When Gaara has not given you permission to enter battle – you stay here!"

With a swift move of her hands she picked up her son, Asuma, and handed him over to Sakura. "also, I need someone to take care of my Asuma, so please, protect him for me – right?"

She looked at the tiny baby in her arms, who had gotten a bit fat since the last time she had seen him, which was about a year ago. Temari kissed him on the forehead before she disappeared along with all the other ninjas. Sakura readjusted the kid and tilted her head slightly, which caused the baby-boy to yawn. She laughed and shook her head. "guess the kid does look like his father afterall."

-

Naruto helped up a boy who was clutching his arm tightly, the hokage frowned slightly. "listen, you can't fight with that arm kid, go back to the camp – you can't do anything" the boy shook his head at Naruto's words. "no! I have to fight!" Naruto shook him slightly. "you go back _now_, it is an order – I don't want to have ninjas on the battlefield who can't fight properly – so now! Go!"

He pushed the boy towards the camp and he could see the small sight of relief on his face. It made him groan. Ninjas these days, especially the young ones, didn't know when to flee or not to flee. Naruto kicked a sound ninja in the stomach, who had jumped towards him a few seconds before. War wasn't something he enjoyed very much – but it did help him release some tension and frustration.

Shikamaru joined him. "yo –Naruto!" he sent a sound ninja flying towards the others. "if we win today, you're going to join us at the party – right?"

Naruto twirled around and kicked another ninja away. "I can't …"

The shadow ninja sat down on his knees and folded his hands together, his shadow rushing forward, grabbing one of the ninjas that were rushing towards them. Naruto gracefully made a rasengan and trusted it into those who were left. Shikamaru looked annoyed. "why not? Maybe it will give you company for the night?"

"hah – yeah right Shikamaru. Why don't you focus on not making Temari pregnant – okay? It will be a shame if we should loose her because you couldn't hold yourself back."

Shikamaru bend his shadow slightly and threw the ninja back into the approaching group. "….it is a miracle that Gaara actually allowed me to have a relationship to her, but I wonder sometimes if it is even worth it." He threw a kunai gracefully at one of them. "…she is bitching an awful lot – especially when it is about Asuma – that is for sure."

"you're kid has grown a lot – don't you think it would be safer for him to stay in Suna than in the camp?" Naruto spoke casually as he jumped over another ninja.

"perhaps – but the camp is safe as hell, with all those brilliant ninjas running around, there is no way any harm can come to him."

Naruto nodded at it. "true – true"

"so – why not join us tonight? Instead of sitting in your tent all night as you always do? Eh?"

"I told you Shikamaru – "before he could continue, a giant fan struck the ground before them and the grinning face of the sand-kunoichi could be appeared. "yo – Naruto!"

Naruto waved his hand. "yo to you Temari."

Shikamaru looked the other way, searching for any sign of remaining ninjas that might be hiding. The sand-kunoichi looked at Naruto arms. "oih, you better go to the medic-clinic with the wound on your right arm Naruto – it doesn't look so well." Naruto looked down and shrugged. "it is nothing, it will go away by the morning."

Temari frowned. "I may not be a medic-nin, but you have to get it cleaned at least – or else it'll be infected."

He sighed – why was it that, even when he was hokage, he was the one being bossed around. "Yes Temari…"

Shikamaru turned back to him. "we're done here – looks like a victory to me – you'll join us tonight Naruto! Wether you want to or not!"

-

Sakura looked down at the young boy sit before her, a frown on her face. "you should be more careful – you may be a ninja, but the battlefield is dangerous." His pushed his dark hair out of his eyes and looked at the floor shamefully. She sat down on a chair and slowly began to wrap the wound on his arm while at the same time healed it as well as she could.

The boy pushed his legs together and sighed, Sakura glanced at him. "what is wrong?"

He flinched slightly in discomfort at her question, but slowly managed to gather the courage to speak. "The Hokage …I am only a gennin, but…will I ever become a good ninja? I just stood on the battlefield paralyzed – didn't know what to do" she cracked an insecure smile, watching the young kid before her look at the ground sadly.

Sakura then patted his hair. "you know what?" he turned his head back to her, wondering what she was doing. "no?"

She grinned. "just train hard, do your best and don't die – then the Hokage will be pleased with whatever work you do!"

The boy stood up, smiling brightly. "when it comes from you! Then it must be true! Thank you!" before Sakura could ask what he meant by that he had disappeared through the tent.

-

_Hinata sat on the bench outside the hokage-tower, her hands folded neatly together. Neji sat beside her and the voices of her father and Naruto could be heard clearly through the door. Her cousin gave her a side-glance before he returned his gaze to the wall in front. "it is the best of the clan Hinata – not that I do not approve of your and Naruto's relationship"_

_The quiet girl didn't say anything, which made him even more frustrated with their situation. "It is alright if you hate me – just tell me…"_

"_I don't hate you Neji-niisan… it is just… we will have to be a lot closer than we…have ever been before, you and I" he turned his gaze to her when she spoke and tried to smile. "hey…it is alright – I won't force you into anything"_

_Hinata looked at the floor sadly. "he probably still loves her…" Neji raised an eyebrow and quickly looked away. It was no secret that Naruto cared deeply for Sakura, however, she had not bothered to return for six years - …perhaps he just liked to cling to the past – just like Neji did at times. "Hinata, I do not want you to think like that…"_

"_I can't help it Neji-nii-san"_

_He sighed and crossed his arms, the voices from the room had quieted, but they were still talking wildly. "if it can help you Hinata-sama, then I can assure you that you have only reached the age of twenty, there is many years to change your fate."_

_Hinata rubbed her fingers together. "…It may be…sad, but Neji-nii-san" she turned her gaze to look at him. "I do not wish to sound cruel – but…I do love Naruto-kun, but…I will be fine with you too."_

_He tried to smile._

_-_

A/N: I made the chapter a bit longer than normal, because I had been walking around saying the chapter will be done several times. However, certain circumstances interfered with my writing, which include – what should I write? – I got sick – I have renewed my loveaffair to my playstation. I do hope it doesn't seem boring this chapter. Next chapter will _have _to be done on Monday! Who knows when I'll get time to write again – eh? After these last weeks insane amount of homework, I need to write whenever I can.

The speed is slowing down – but it will start to speed up in the next chapter – I won't allow it to reach forty chapters!

All rights to kishi.

Review of you feel like it.


	24. Book 1 Chapter 24

Temari sat on the wooden log with a bored expression. Earlier that evening Shikamaru had refused to participate in any kind of dancing. He also preferred the company of Konoha nins over her. Temari's mouth turned into a pout and she turned her gaze to her son on her lap. Asuma played with a wooden stick he had found a few minutes ago. Her hand touched his black hair and frowned.

Shikamaru and she had without a doubt grown closer this past year – and calling the relationship a friendship was far from what they were. He had never proclaimed he loved her or that he wanted her more than anything else, but Shikamaru surely showed that he indeed wanted to stay by her side. Whenever he could, he would come to her tent. Not once giving her a chance to speak before he had thrown her on the bed in her room, and the rest is history Temari would tell herself often.

Her eyes wandered to the bonfire in the middle and a hand went to her stomach. She bit her lip, fearing that letting him into her life again might cause her more trouble than she already had. Temari closed her eyes and remembered a conversation she had had with Gaara. His face never showed any emotion. Or rather, she could never tell what he felt, even when Temari was his dearly beloved older sister. The conversation had indeed been strange. Gaara had been mad, Kankoru told her much later.

Gaara's wife has yet to carry children. Temari even questioned if they had even dared to step beyond a small cherry kiss – the thought of Gaara kissing Harrah seemed distant and weird. So, the Kazekage had in a very monotone voice told her that if she had a relationship with Shikamaru Nara, then it was time to tell him – she would not be punished or seen upon as abnormal. But it was important that he knew how Temari saw him. She had answered truthfully and without saying anything out loud. She hinted that Shikamaru was the father of her child. The conversation had ended with Temari being sent to build a camp for the rebel forces and Suna …with Shikamaru.

Asuma looked up and suddenly wailed as he reached up for his mother. Temari's frown deepened and took him under his tiny arms. "You're beginning to look more and more like your father – complains when you can't get what you want easily", she looked into the dark eyes which he had inherited from his father and pouted. "Why didn't you get my beautiful looks? You would catch girls even better than you farther if that had happened." The little boy just continued to wail and tried to hug his mother, but she held him from her chest. "I already fed you an hour ago!" Temari exclaimed defeatedly.

Asuma pouted at his mother and kept quiet; with a swift move of her hand she ruffled his hair. "Good boy – now teach your father that too"

If Temari had to be truthful – she didn't mind Shikamaru being the father at all. A smile made its way to the corners of her mouth. A small shriek from the other side of the fire made her look up, and she saw the already legendary adopted daughter of Naruto, Tohru, tucking wildly on Sakura's shirt. The pink haired kunoichi looked slightly uncomfortable of the thought of dancing and glanced at her bottle of sake. Temari couldn't help but feel that the girl had taken after her teacher in more ways than one.

She then turned her gaze and saw the Hokage sit by himself. Naruto was staring at the Tohru and Sakura, his face unreadable. However, he looked as if he was a bit…saddened or stressed. The rumours about the Hokage having nightmares had spread quickly through the camp. Many had asked what he could be dreaming about that could be so terrible. Temari had the feeling that Naruto's feelings for the pink-haired kunoichi might not be as hateful as many believed.

Asuma chew slightly on his stick.

Naruto was lonely, no doubt about that – even Shikamaru had had a hard time cheering him up lately – perhaps …perhaps…

"Hey Temari" a body sat down beside her, the scent of alcohol stinging the air around him. Her lover, the shadow-nin looked at her, who now had a relaxed and less serious expression on her face.

"You look great."

….

He was drunk.

…

"You haven't said that for three years" Temari muttered in a bored voice and handed him a bottle of water. "You smell horrible." He took the bottle and sipped slightly.

"Really?"

"Yeah – which means you'll have to sleep in your own tent tonight," when she said that Shikamaru's hand grabbed hers as he smirked.

"You don't want me to do that Temari-_chan_".

She narrowed her eyes and pushed him away. "I don't like when you're drunk" she tensed when his head hit her shoulder with a thud, the smirk never disappearing. She looked around nervously. Luckily most of the ninjas around the bonfire was too drunk to notice the act of loving displayed before them – or rather, one-sided loving.

"Mmm – Temari…I've been thinking" She just groaned in reply, and one of his hands sneaked around her neck, holding her in an almost tender way. Temari hated when Shikamaru was drunk. "…I think…I want to marry you…" Temari's eyes snapped towards him and even Asuma grew quiet in her arms. Before she could manage to open her arms and respond his hold tightened and the smirk was gone. "I think…I really…really want to stay with you …until I die"

Temari looked at him incredulously and sighed. "You're drunk – we'll talk this over when you're sober again"

"I will stay with you…I want us to continue having a family…"

She groaned. "Shikamaru…"

There was no response and she felt his grip loosen, his head buried deeply into her neck as he breathing grew deeper. She brought her son closer to her and looked at Tohru who had managed to drag Naruto to her and Sakura, so she could talk to both persons at the same time. Naruto was stiff and tense. The same could be said about Sakura. Shikamaru woke up slightly and released Temari, then sat up insecurely as he looked into the bonfire.

"I would like to go back now…"

She nodded and took Asuma in her arms. "Let's go back"

-

Orochimaru looked at the paper he had just received. The sign in the top was the official signia from the land of the rocks and the letters underneath it made the Nanadaime smirk in victory. The Tuschikage had come to know of his plans of destroying Konoha and was now willingly cooperating with him to get rid of Naruto…The snake sannin's gaze turned to the window and saw a pink haired woman walking through the street towards her house further down. His hand stroked the paper in a contemplative manner.

-

Naruto opened his eyes and looked at the ceiling of his tent above him. The sun had just risen and he yawned, a hand scratching the side of his temple. How many weeks had passed since she had arrived? He looked at his hand that scratched his forehead and spoke out loud. "Five weeks…"

He groaned at the thought of Tohru constantly complaining about him not talking to Sakura. Ever since Naruto had decided to tell her (rather harshly) that he didn't care about Sakura, Tohru shut her mouth and glared at him whenever she saw him. It was not that often Tohru saw him – mostly he would be too busy with duties and fighting to see her. It hurt Naruto, but he was daily updated with her progress in training – it made him proud to know that Tohru was better at ninjutsu than most of the other kids…

Naruto sat up and searched for his discarded clothes – today would be another busy day.

-

Raika looked up from his papers and saw the Tuschikage look out the window with grief. He raised an eyebrow. "Are you alright Tuschikage-sama?" the brown haired younger man looked away from the window and towards his trusted advisor.

"I have been thinking, Raika." He rubbed his chin in thought. "My father – the Godaime Tsuchikage – he was with Haruno Sakura in the hours before his death, yes?" Raika looked down at his papers. "That has not been confirmed, sir – and everybody knows that your father died from a heart failure – he was an old man. It was his time anyway." The Tuschikage's face turned into a slight annoyance. "But she is a medic – she would be able to fake his death"

"Sir" Raika said sternly. "You may hold a grudge towards Konoha and the former Hokage – and you may even hate Haruno-san for entering our grounds without being detected. But now is not the time to jump to conclusions – if you want to be as great as your father, you must to be logical."

The Tuschikage sighed and looked out on the grey sky and the hard rain hitting the ground.

-

Gaara sat with his wife, Neji, Temari, Shikamaru and Naruto, with his legs crossed and the usual blank form on his face. Temari leaned forward, her finger pointing on a spot. "Currently, the Sand has sent out several groups of ninjas" her finger shot towards a place towards the north. "Kankuro and several other ninjas are placed here, looking for information regarding the rock ninjas." She then moved her finger closer to Konoha. "Here, we have Baki doing SS missions, which have not concluded as yet."

She moved the finger back to the camp and to the left, towards the Sand country. "Sakura and several others of our younger nins took a trip towards Suna in order to give the capital information regarding our progress. They should return in a few days" Gaara nodded and leaned backwards, Naruto rubbed his chin and then pointed towards a red flashy line indicating how much they had conquered.

"We will release an attack tomorrow which will hopefully move our forces closer" his hand moved even closer to Konoha. "Closer to enemy lines – but this will mean it will be necessary for us to move the camp closer to the border, in order to have a more effective attack." Gaara nodded at this while Harrah sat completely still.

Neji looked at Shikamaru. "You have any ideas? We need a good strategy to gain more land." The shadow nin looked from Naruto to Neji and then to Gaara. His hand was placed on his lap and he was about to open his mouth when a ninja ran into the tent. "Kazekage-sama! Haruno Sakura's group is back – it is terrible!"

All of the people in the room looked up startled, Gaara narrowed his eyes. "What is it?"

"Half of the group is dead! And the rest has been wounded." Neji looked up, his eyes slightly wide. "Who attacked them?" the ninja was panting hard and lifted a hand to signal a pause.

Naruto noticed the new found interest in the gaze of Neji's, but chose to ignore it and focussed on the sand nin, who struggled to breath – after a short break, "We do not know…Haruno Sakura refuses to speak and the others are too wounded to be asked about it at the moment"

Naruto stood up, his hand waved for Shikamaru to follow him. "I need to talk to you" the shadow nin stood up and both of them exited the tent.

When they had walked for a while, the former hokage looked at his friend. "Who do you think did it?"

Shikamaru raised his eyes and met Naruto's gaze. "I have my theories. It would've been easier if Sakura wished to cooperate with us at times. She is not making her shoddy reputation better by doing this." Naruto nodded at what Shikamaru said, and the shadow-nin continued. "My guess would be Akatsuki."

There was silence for a short moment.

"Why?" Naruto's voice came slowly.

Shikamaru cracked his knuckles shortly and looked straight ahead. "It is just a theory of mine – but, she has been attacked before, when she was in Konoha a year ago and when you and she were in the cottage. Both those attacks were by members of the Akatsuki – or rather, the first time in Konoha Itachi and Kisame came and interrupted her trial and some people say they saw Itachi go the same direction as she. Also, it has been proven that Itachi and a lightning-nin attacked her after she left Suna."

He turned his head to Naruto seriously. "She is a great ninja – even Rock ninjas barely stand a chance against her and that can only mean that someone on her level or higher must've attacked." Shikamaru's eyes narrowed. "We both know that she is capable of bringing down a kage, but it will not be without difficulties"

Naruto looked from Shikamaru and then back to the road before him. "…"

The shadow nin did the same and continued to speak. "She endangers the camp – she is good in battle, but not _that_ good for us to keep her. Especially not if I am right and Akatsuki is after her – they would not stop to prevent destroying the camp." Naruto didn't say anything and looked deep in thought, his companion shrugged his shoulders. "She is Gaara's to keep, he decides if Sakura is going to get kicked out or not. I'm sure that's only a minor detail, your word is law here."

Naruto stopped and crossed his arms. "We can't lose focus on Orochimaru, especially now. Distractions and those who hurt our cause must be removed." He turned around and started to walk towards his tent.

-

Hinata looked at the woman sitting further down in the tent alone – her pink hair drenched with blood and her hands folded in deep thought. Sakura's eyes were distant and her shoulders tense. From time to time Hinata could see Sakura shake her head in disbelief. The Hyuuga woman turned away and focussed on the task before her. The Suna nins looked miserable – their wounds looking like they had been blown into their skin.

Hinata couldn't help but turn her gaze again – the look on Sakura's face showed nothing but regret and sorrow…Everyone wondered what would happen to her now.

Sakura brought a hand to her stomach, stroking the bandages covering the flesh wound and closed her eyes.

-

The small house in the lightning country was illuminated with a soft light from a lamp. A small boy with dark hair was sitting on the terrace, watching the fireflies chasing each other in an almost wonderful dance. His hands held a small wooden sword in his hands. The older brother was too busy discussing with his parents to play with him. His almost black eyes turned from the fireflies to look at his parents and brother in the living room.

He couldn't hear much besides the occasional words– war – death – food. He pouted and jumped down on the grass and walked towards their small pond full of fish. He bent his head so his face was reflected in the dark water…his eyes widened when his mirror image became older and his eyes…red.

"Kozuki!" a voice came from the small cottage and his mother looked at him with a kind smile. "Can you please help your father with some stuff in the shop will you?"

Kozuki stood up and nodded. "Yes mother…" the dark haired woman smiled and turned to look at the pond, her hands folded together neatly. It had been a blessing that she had received two sons in a row – but…her youngest seemed to make several ninjas remember something and it was always the same name. Sas…

"Mom! Come here! Dad needs you!"

-

Naruto sat at a lunch table in the huge dinner tent, his table covered with various papers of locations and mission reports. The attack on the sound forces had gone well, and they had moved the border even closer to Konoha. They were winning. It was no lie that he was tired and exhausted, but on the inside his was happy. Happy for the turn of events after years of turmoil and chaos.

A larger man sat down opposite from him and Naruto looked up and met the face of Jirayia who was already busy consuming a bottle of sake. "Yo, Kage-san!" his overly cheerful voice echoed through the mostly emptied tent. People were already starting to pack their stuff and get themselves ready for the journey. All they needed was a safe route to travel.

"Yo, Ero-sennin" the frog master glared at his student. "I told you already, don't call me that – haven't you grown up at all these years!?" Naruto shrugged and looked down at the papers again, his face drawn into a serious expression. Jiraiya pushed the bottle towards him.

"Drink kid! It'll loosen you up"

Naruto shook his head. "I don't like the taste." The frog master looked at him surprised and in disbelief. "This is not how I trained you! You can't tell me that you don't like to drink sake!" The former Hokage glanced at his teacher annoyed.

"I don't like it – end of story"

Jirayia gave him a thoughtful smile. "So what are your plans – I heard that you were going to move the camp." Naruto nodded and turned a page.

"Yeah, I am going to check out some routes tomorrow, and then we'll move the camp the day after tomorrow." The frog master nodded and drank some more of the sake before him.

"Tsunade would be proud of you…"

Naruto cracked a small forced smile. "Right."

-

Gaara folded his hands and looked up at the woman before him. He could see the dark bags underneath her eyes. She probably had not had much sleep after working on the clinic the past few days.

"Sakura." he started and looked at the file beside him, reports of a dark cloaked man with blond hair had been observed, but it was not a good description. Temari had tried to get information out of Sakura, but she had refused to cooperate with anyone. "I have a mission for you."

The pink-haired woman looked at him, non-responsive.

"You must've heard we're moving the camp. We're trying different routes to see which one that is the best, however, one of the routes is past an old Akatsuki hide-out. Since you have much information concerning Akatsuki we expect that you will be able to create a route that avoids them"

Sakura tensed slightly at the mention, but nodded. "Who will I have to escort?"

"Uzumaki Naruto, I expect that even though the two of you are not the…best of friends, you will show him the correct route" he showed her a map. "Here is the map and the area you will lead him through and where the next camp will be. He will meet you at the exit in the afternoon"

She looked at him for a moment before nodding again. "Yes, Kazekage-sama."

It started to rain outside – the arrival of autumn.

-

_Tsunade sat on her bed with her hands folded before her__. Jirayia sitting before her holding her them as he tried to comfort her. Her eyes were empty and she glanced at the floor underneath them. The famous medic ninja's shoulders were tense and she clutched the bloody crystal within her hands – a gift she had given to Dan – but now…he was gone…_

"_Tsunade…" the taller male before her spoke softly, his eyes clearly showing the sorrow by seeing her in this state. However, she spoke before him. "I had a dream last night…"_

_He didn't say anything. She bit her lips and closed her eyes. "I saw a boy…or rather…a man…with blond hair. He reminded me so much about Nanaki and…Dan, he even carried this necklace around his neck." She looked up, tears streaming down her face and she drew in a large breath. "I want to give this necklace to that boy…"_

_Jirayia looked at her before nodding. "Yeah – give it to him."_

_-_

It was raining. Raining hard. The road ahead of them was covered in mud and they were both drenched. Naruto walked a few feet behind the pink haired lady who was examining the area in an almost paranoid fashion. They were both chilled to the bone, but continued on – rain had never bothered to stop a ninja before. A river was running on their left, but to get down to it you had to climb down a rather steep hill and avoid smashing into the occasional trees on the way.

He turned to look at Sakura who had her hidden her face under the very same cloak she had worn when she arrived, but the same could be said about him. He hated his own cloak, it stung and scratched and it was even ugly. However, he had to take what he could get and that was all that mattered. Naruto sighed and looked around – he had spent all day having various ninjas showing him routes here and there to the designated place for the new camp.

This would be the last one and of course, it was with the woman, whom he had not talked to for more than a month plus a year. If you don't count their meeting as a conversation.

It made him remember the conversation he had with Shikamaru the other day. Their suspicions of the attacker being an Akatsuki had been confirmed – it was Deidara who had attacked. Naruto looked at her waist, and tried to imagine where he must've hit her during the fight. He squinted his eyes and he was sure he could see her tense slightly whenever the wound hurt. But that didn't make any sense. Had she not healed it?

The rain intensified and he fastened his pace slightly and looked around. She did the same. They walked like that for hours, in complete silence.

When the rain seemed to lessen Naruto turned to gaze at Sakura's back once more. What was she doing? Why was she still here? Why was Akatsuki after –

"Stop" her voice spoke in a whisper almost. He walked up beside her and looked around, before noticing the small hole into the ground. "What is this?" he asked with curiosity in his voice.

Sakura bent down and picked up a small rock and threw it at the spot. Nothing happened.

"It is one of the traps Zetsu would make – a pit trap." She threw another rock at the ground even harder, but nothing happened. "It seems as if it is malfunctioning. Good, then we won't have to turn around the-"

Her eyes widened when the earth underneath her suddenly collapsed. The trap didn't work as intended and the mud and earth created a landslide down the hill towards the river. Before Sakura could do anything she felt herself slip in the mud and was dragged with the stream.

"Shit!" Naruto's eyes widened and he jumped towards her, grabbing her arm hard. However, his feet slipped in the muddy surface as well. He fell into the mud seeing the river bank and the branch of a tree come close fast. Naruto quickly yanked her up and took her around the waist, grabbing the branch before him. Sakura screamed out as if she had been hurt badly.

The slide's momentum continued and before he knew it, the branch he held unto cracked and they was thrown towards the river. He held her tighter and could hear her gasp in pain, but that was all he sensed before he felt the icy water around himself. Naruto's arms still held her tight. The time he spent underneath the water seemed like an eternity before he finally emerged, trying to catch his breath.

He dragged Sakura up the water and he heard her cough up water. Naruto kept his hold on her arm , still making sure she wouldn't slip. Her chest heaved up and down and he turned to look at her. What surprised him was the look on her face – mixture between lack of air and extreme pain. He couldn't prevent the words, they just slipped out of him. "You okay?"

Her eyes turned to glare at him. "What are you doing!? You slipped on purpose didnt you! Aren't you supposed to be Hokage!?" Naruto narrowed his eyes and looked down at her.

"Well – aren't you supposed to be Sannin?"

Sakura was about to push away from him when the pain from her wound returned. Her eyes closed hard and her nails dug unintentionally into his arm. The annoyed look disappeared and Naruto bent down to see her face clearer. "Hey? Are you hurt anywhere? Did you get hit something when you fell?"

"It is nothing" she hissed and one of her hands went to her stomach. He looked thoughtful for a second, before speaking.

"Why are you lying? It is obvious that you have a wound –"

"I said it's nothing!"

He scowled and lessened his hold on her waist, but did not let go. "Of course it is nothing. But how do you expect me to go further down the route if my guide is wounded?"

"It will pass in a few minutes." He shook his head and lowered himself slightly and took his other arm underneath her legs, lifting her up in bridal style. If it didn't hurt too much she might have resisted, but all she did was give another hiss and Naruto could feel some blood touch his hand holding her around her waist. "It's the wound from the other day? When you were attacked, right? Why didn't you heal it?"

"Nothing" she spoke, and he just shook his head and stepped out of the river, over to the other side of the river, away from the slide. The rain had stopped and when he slowly sat her down on the ground in front of a tree. Sakura glared at him, one hand still holding her stomach. Naruto raised an eyebrow.

"Why are you not healing it?"

She pouted and looked the other way. "There was a slight infection. Takes more energy and hard to find ointments to heal it, and I don't have that." Naruto sat down beside her, rubbing his temple.

"I knew something like this was going to happen" he muttered.

There was an almost unbearable silence.

A leaf fell down from one of the trees and landed on Naruto's leg. Before he turned his face to it, Naruto could see the pained look on her face had lessened slightly. He sighed and turned to find some bandages in the small pouch he carried. He could feel her gaze turn from the river to him, as if wondering what he was doing. Before Sakura could say anything he turned towards her and forcefully removed the hand covering her bleeding stomach. Sakura's eyes widened.

With a swift move of his hand he unzipped her shirt quickly, but she pushed him away. "What are you doing!? We're in the middle of a forest and-!"

"I am trying to bandage your wound so it won't get anymore infected."

Sakura glared. "…" her hand grabbed the bandages and sat up straighter, but not without hissing slightly. Naruto just sat there, completely still, watching her slowly remove the old bandage in order to change it with the new one. His eyes turned from the wound to her face and he saw how it had turned from pain to a slight regret. But he decided not to ask and just watched her softly damp away the blood. It didn't take her long before the new bandage had been wrapped tightly around her waist and she zipped her shirt.

They sat in silence for a while before Sakura turned to look up at him. "Why are you staring?"

"No reason."

She was about to yell at him when he quickly took her hand and placed it on top of the wound. "Heal it. I can't drag you back to the camp. It will mean you will become a burden to us." Sakura looked at him and then down at his hand still covering her hand, before she in a quiet voice whispered.

"I told you already, healing infections is different than healing open wounds. You have to kill the bacteria and then afterwards you'll need to-"

Naruto removed his hand and waved it. "Hey, hey, I trained under Tsunade too. I know all about that, but you are the legendary Haruno Sakura, right? It should be an easy task for you to do." She looked down at the ground, the rain having completely stopped, leaving both of them soaked and muddy.

"It takes me a great amount of energy… If we're to be ambushed then my attacks won't be that powerf- " Naruto quickly raised his hand.

"Hey. There are _two_ people here. You heal the wound, I'll take care of the bad guys" Sakura kicked the ground and crossed her legs.

"I can fight too! You shouldn't think of me as incapable of fighting just because I should heal a- hey why the hell are you laughing!?" her face become flushed when she noticed Naruto had turned away to hide a laugh. Her frown disappeared and he signalled with a finger that he would stop in a moment. The only sound that echoed through the forest was Naruto's muffled laughter. Sakura sighed and started to focus the chakra in her hand in order to do a healing jutsu.

"I can't believe I forgot how angry you can get" the frown came back.

"Well! Some of us have to be rational in this situation. I bet that you slipped on purpose, just so you could laugh at me now!" Naruto turned his back to her, looking slightly amused.

In that moment, it was as everything they had gone through was forgotten. Akatsuki, Konoha, the war, the rock – everything gone. All because of the single look he was giving her. Naruto was smiling and his voice was light. "You know, I don't feel like arguing, so heal yourself and we'll go back to the camp. This route is not safe with all of those traps." He then brought a hand to her face and grabbed a lock of wet hair. "You look like you need a bath."

Sakura growled. "So do you. You can't get any girl while looking like _that._" Naruto shrugged, his hand still not leaving her pink hair, as if he was examining the texture.

"Oh really? And you expect to get a man like that too? I can tell you, you look far from pretty with all that mud in your face. And it was _you_ who dragged me with you." She opened her mouth in disbelief.

"Wait a minute! You jumped to save me."

He laughed and placed the hand on her head, ruffling her hair, treating her like a child. "Well, that is just because you're too much of a coward to admit that you're clumsy."

Sakura glared at him. "I am _not_ a coward. You're the one who's crazy!"

"Crazy?" he pouted slightly and looked at the sky. "yeah – I am a bit crazy you know – who wouldn't have been crazy? I am running through a forest in the rain and I am laughing – I actually feel happy – hahahahah"

Her glare disappeared. "Happy?"

"Yeah! I mean, everything is going so well lately. We're winning the war, and hardly lose any ninjas any more! I feel like I can take on the world!" Naruto stood up, grinning. "Before you know it, I'll be back in Konoha! Kicking Orochimaru's butt!" his laughter continued through the forest. But when Naruto turned his eyes to look at her, his smile disappeared.

Sakura's head was bent downwards, her hands busily concentrating on putting the right amount of chakra into the wound. Her hands and arms were covered in mud and Naruto suddenly felt saddened. It was not so long ago when she would laugh with him as he proclaimed what he intended to do…Naruto missed that.

Naruto sat down in front of her, but she didn't look up and he felt that he didn't want to stay mad at her today. Why not just…stay happy? "Hey, you alright?"

She didn't look up. "Mmm, I am fine"

The raindrops started again and his looked at her hands, which were tenderly taking care of the wound. Naruto frowned. Why was Akatsuki always messing things up? Why were they always trying to make his life miserable, Gaara's life, even Tohru-chan's life too…and Sakura's life miserable. His hand reached out and carefully started to remove some of the dirt on her arm.

This time Sakura looked up and she met the usual blue eyes. His hand went from her arm to her hand, rubbing the rough skin tenderly. The green light never disappeared even though he continued to rub her fingers, her palm…

Naruto looked her and then down at her hand, before he scooted closer.

_Itachi t__ightened his arms around Sakura, his red sharingan eyes illuminating the room. "She is mine…you lost her" Itachi's hand caressed the pink hair tenderly. "I had her before you…monster…she will be mine…"_

"_Give up"_

Naruto's hand tightened on hers and just as he was about to say something, her other hand suddenly was placed on top of his. His blue eyes jumped up and met her green eyes. They looked at him calmly. No hate, no disgust…

"Why?" he whispered.

Sakura didn't say a thing.

The green light disappeared, signalling that she had finished healing the wound. She patted his hand and released it, before she was about to stand up. However, before she stood up fully a pair of strong arms wrapped themselves around her and pushed her into a full-hearted embrace. Naruto buried his head into the crook of her neck, holding her tightly against him. His voice wasn't weak – but it wasn't strong either. " a year…a year…"

When hearing him speak like that, she brought her own arms around him, clinging to him almost desperately – she whispered herself. "I am so sorry…" he shushed her and nuzzled his face into her hair. "please…don't…"

They sat like there for a long time, Naruto just holding her and her holding him.

Then he turned his head upwards, softly kissing her hair before pulling back. His hands were still on her waist, but his gaze was on the ground. "ah – I don't what came over me…" a hand clamped itself over his mouth, preventing him from speaking and he looked up. She looked as if she was begging.

"it…is alright…I don't mind…no questions…just…" she took a deep breath and slowly removed the hand, before a striking smile claimed her features. "it is just that…I missed this…"

Silence.

She then brought her hand back to dry some of the mud of her face.

"Sakura…"

Their gaze locked and it was as if everything disappeared – no mud – no past – no Sasuke – no Konoha – no war.

Naruto never managed to say anything else before her hands went to cup his face and her lips crashed against his. He was slightly taken back by Sakura's sudden movement, but his stomach was flying with glee. All of a sudden he just couldn't think of anything besides the woman before her and couldn't feel anything besides the wonderful sensation of her fingers against his skin, and their lips on lips.

His eyes closed and he brought one of his own hands to her neck, intensifying the situation they were in. He didn't care if they were covered with mud, rain – here she was …

…here she was…

And he just couldn't make himself stop.

Kisses turned into something more. Her hands found their way to his hair, tucking, pulling, but it never hurt. His hands were trembling as if he was afraid it was all a dream, yet he couldn't stop them – they needed to feel her – needed to know she was there. Sakura then started to kiss him almost desperately, while speaking.

"I am…so…sorry…" his pressed his lips towards hers again, preventing her from speaking any further. He couldn't bear to hear it – he didn't want to be reminded – not now at least.

The rain started again…

…and Naruto's lips were no longer on her lips, but her on her cheeks, her nose, her neck and lastly her forehead. They sat like that for several minutes before he stopped and turned his back up to stare at her. Her lips were slightly parted, but they were smiling.

"I missed you…"

The words made him embrace her harder again, bringing his lips down upon her neck. Trails of kisses covered every single piece of skin. Her hands grabbed his shirt in surprise and a slight gasp escaped her lips. His hands travelled down her back, holding her closer as if afraid she would disappear in any moment.

However, before he could possibly continue she cupped his face and kissed him on the lips again. Cherry kisses, passionate kissed, desperate kisses – you name it. Naruto couldn't prevent it, he felt like he had a huge bobble inside his stomach ready to burst any minute. If he had his way he wouldn't stop this, he would go on and …

"Naruto…" she gasped. He stopped and looked up at her, but no words escaped her mouth. Instead he cracked a smile and shook his head. "…it is raining…"

She looked up, her hands still on his shoulders. He stood up and yanked her up with him. "better go back to the camp – " she nodded and tried to brush off some of the dirt, but it was futile. They were drenched, but Sakura had not seen Naruto smile like that ever since she arrived. His hand went down and he took her hand in his as he spoke softly. "don't think…about what happened …a year ago" her smile faltered a bit.

He continued. "I don't want to bother solving it…still won't change that I missed you…I…_really_ missed you"

She shook her head, but still smiled. "You must've hit your head when you fell…"

He shrugged. "Your fault I slipped" and then started walking.

"It wasn't!"

-

A/N: I am tired, I want to go to bed, if you have any questions – then ask. By the way, **alerts: **_**105!! **_

I am so happy that I have so many alerts! Hurraaaaay!!

Another thing. Who is Kozuki? If you know who it is, then I can tell you there is a legendary person called --- Kozuki. Heh.

All rights to kishi!


	25. Book 1 Chapter 25

The new camp was not like the firs tone. Hidden between two mountain belts it seemed to be either the worst or the best place to camp. Sakura didn't know which she should think of. However, at the same time she felt sort of glad that she got closer to Konoha than to Suna – they were winning. The sun was barely rising and she was already busy readjusting the ropes to her tent… even though she had to admit she hardly slept in there any longer.

Her cheeks coloured slightly pink when she remembered back at all those nights in _his_ tent. Her stomach tingled with delight and she smiled brightly at the yellow fabric of her tent. It was like she could feel his hands on her hips and his kisses on her neck and….various other places. The blush intensified and she began to fidget with the rope. It was horrible, every night she would go to his tent and they would…to say mildly…not get much sleep.

Sakura shook her head. It wasn't the time to daydream about Naruto in the middle of a war. Yet, she couldn't help but smile.

-

Yamato stared at Tohru with a bored expression. "What are you doing?". She didn't say anything and continued to move her hands randomly. He tried again. "What are you doing?" The brown haired girl turned her head to look at him over her shoulder. "I am trying to make a tree grow." He raised an eyebrow and stood up and walked over to her, standing beside her while looking at the ground.

Her small fingers patted the ground where she had planted the seed. He spoke. "Tohru, you have already learned how to make a tree – why plant one instead?" the little girl smile and poked his side hard. "Well of course! We can't just always make plants like we want – it is just some stupid short cut – sometimes we need to let nature do what it wants to."

He looked at where she poked him, and glares. "…"

Yamato sighed. "Short cuts eh? Who have said that to you?"

"My dad!"

-

Naruto sat up in his bed, feeling more relaxed than he had done in days. He looked around the tent with a content gaze, as he felt the person beside him sit up. Her arms went over his shoulder and she nuzzled her head against his cheek. "Hmm – go back to sleep, there is still a few hours till sunrise"

Naruto took one of her hands and brought it to his lips, kissing it lovingly. Sakura smiled against the corner of his neck, pressing herself up against his back. "You're really silly right now … hmm?" she could feel he smiled against her wrist as he kissed it too.

"I can go for two days without sleep" he muttered against her palm, his lips only slightly parted. She held unto him a bit tighter, closing her eyes. "As a medic I know that it is not healthy at all, you need to get some sleep." He teasingly licked her wrist, and she gave a shriek in surprise.

He grinned.

She groaned and playfully hit his shoulder as well as she could from where she sat. "Damnit Naruto, you remind me of some sort of animal! Aren't you sophisticated at all?"

The grin widened.

"I can tell all sorts of other situations where you sound like an Animal, Sakura-_chan_. For example, a few minutes ago, I swear I heard you moan like a pig" despite the offence, Sakura couldn't help but laugh, and rested her head against his neck. "I can't believe I return here every night to hear _that_."

His blue eyes met her green ones, even though it was very hard from how they were sitting. His hold on her wrist tightened, and he brought her knuckles to his lips. There were no words, and no smiles – as if both afraid to tell what they felt, but still were able to tell without even saying them.

The blanket around her chest fell as she reached up and kissed him passionately on the lips. His hands went from his lap and her wrist, to her hips, holding her tightly.

With her eyes closed she let him push her back in the bed…

-

_Jiraiya leaned back in his seat, watching Naruto fight against Tsunade. Nineteen years old, and his strength outmatched the vast majority of Konoha. His speed was incredible too, moving so fast that it seemed like he disappeared._

_The blond-haired woman slammed her fist into the ground, but before it even hit the brown earth, Naruto had kicked her hands away, and now she was flying across the ground. The blond-haired Naruto grinned, proud of his progress._

_Jiraiya noticed that Tsunade's hands were shaking as she tried to stand up. Age must be catching up with her too._

_-_

Naruto sat on the mountain side, looking over the camp with a smile. He felt someone come from behind him and sat down. Shikamaru scratched his ear, not turning to Naruto.

"So…what are you doing here?" he asked after a while.

Naruto leaned back and the setting sun reminded him of his days in the Hokage-tower. "I am thinking about things. We're winning the war Shikamaru, and soon…everything will be like it used to be"

Shikamaru looked thoughtful. "When…you don't need me in Konoha any longer, I think I'll move to Suna." This made the Rokudaime turn his head towards him, but there was no disapproving frown, only a look of understanding. He clapped Shikamaru on the shoulder and then looked back at the camp.

No words were exchanged afterwards – only the mutual understanding.

-

Neji hissed when Hinata applied the medical cream on his back. Even though she tried her best to be tender, it was hard not to draw pain from the wounds he had gotten on his back. Their shared tent was small, with only one semi large bed in the middle, where they were currently sitting.

In a low voice she spoke. "Please, try…and be calm." He didn't say anything in return and bit down in his lip when she applied the cream on another wound.

It was strange. How her fingers seemed so loving, as they traced his back, and every time it came across a scar, he could fel how sadness and remorse overtook her. He decided to ignore the pain, and instead focus on how she moved her hands across his back.

She wasn't strong minded or strong in strength either. She didn't object if someone ordered something from her. He doubted sometimes that if Naruto came to her, and ordered her to sleep with him, she wouldn't have it in her to say no…or maybe it was just him.

Neji had several weeks ago found out of Sakura and Naruto's newly created relationship, but didn't have it in him to tell Hinata. Every time he considered telling, he could see her broken heart and hurt face.

He sighed when her hands reached his neck.

-

Kisame looked up when he felt Zetsu emerge from the ground. His shark-like eyes gazed at the plant-like figure who gazed back at him.

"anything new?"

"_the camp has moved several kilometres towards Konoha – it is between two mountainpasses – it'll be hard to do a discreet mission to infiltrate the camp."_

Kisame looked annoyed. "we were just to retrieve Hanara Tohru and Haruno Sakura, that is all – how hard can it be?"

"_very hard, the Rokudaime is not someone you mess with"_

_-_

_Itachi stared strangely wide-eyed at Sakura, who sat opposite from him. Exhausted from the constant torture she had fallen unconscious. Itachi had never before experienced someone who seemed to have a second personality. His hand reached out and grabbed her cheek, and forced her head upwards so he could get a better look at her._

_To him she seemed so weak. Her only strength resting in her stubbornness. He grabbed her chin a bit harder, and narrowed his eyes. Every time he entered her mind, he was overwhelmed with emotions – not just sad, but good emotions too. It was…intoxicating. _

_-_

He saw her eyes flutter open when his hand slowly pushed back the pink hairs that had fallen into her face. When seeing this she scooted closer and buried her head in his chest. Naruto kissed her temple. She spoke.

"The camp is going to be divided soon. Will you be fine on your own?"

He moved his hands from her shoulders to her hips and muttered. "Probably going to miss this, but I know I'll have years with this afterwards." She laughed slightly and poked his stomach. He returned her poke by lifting her up and kissing her own stomach.

-

Kozuki looked up from the terrace, his brother beside him, watching the stars. "So? Where do you think we'll go when we're grown up?"

The darkhaired boy looked at the stars too, smiling. "I am going to be just what father is! And I'll sell a lot of stuff, and become rich!" his older brother laughed. "that is not what I am going to be! I am going to be a legendary warrior, that'll save princesses and countries!"

Kozuki snorted and looked the other way. "no way, you don't have it in you!"

-

Orochimaru looked at the man and woman before him, their eyes wide as Kabuto smirked at them. "mr and mrs Haruno am I right?" they couldn't even nod of fear. He turned to Kabuto.

"I believe you need to deliver the message."

-

Sakura jumped through the trees, kunai ready in her hand as she cut through the hords of sound ninjas. To her it seemed like they were coming from every where. She was beginning to be exhausted from all this battle. A ninja appeared in front of her and she jumped gracefully to one side, hitting the ground with her foot, making it crack open.

Strangely, she felt herself being pushed backwards and down on the ground. Her eyes met the dark ones of Kabuto, and she squirmed to get away. "what do you want!?"

The sound had stopped moving, and Sakura was the only leaf ninja in the area. She was screwed.

"I am not here to fight Haruno-san. I am merely here to give a message."

She narrowed her eyes. " a message?"

Kabuto smiled. "yes, from none other than the Nanadaime himself"

She went quiet, and he continued.

"_I have your parents as hostages. In order for me to release them and not kill them, you'll bring me the reincarnation of Uchiha Sasuke, which I believe you already know who is"_ he said in a creepy voice. Sakura's eyes widened.

"What!?" she felt herself freeze and suddenly she couldn't move. It was as if her world suddenly crashed down…

"_you have ten days to pick up the boy and return to Konoha, or else your parents will die"_

Kabuto disappeared along with the sound ninjas before she could do anything.

-

When she entered the camp, her mind numb from the news she had just received, Hinata screamed. "Sakura! Hurry! Temari is hurt! We need your help!" with her feet moving on their own, she ran as if this was a matter of life and death…as if it was a matter of her parents or Sasuke.

The tent smelled of blood and medicine. It always smelled like that. The yellow walls were smattered here and there with blood, and she saw it, in the operation room, Temari lying, gasping for breath while Shikamaru leaned over her, with an expression she had never seen on his face before. She pushed him aside. "Wait in the front tent"

Shikamaru just sat down on the bench, head in his hands.

-

It seemed like hours before Sakura came out of the tent, she dried her bloody hands in a towel, a look of sadness on her face. Shikamaru didn't look up. Silence.

"Shikamaru. Temari-san is going to be alright."

"…"

Sakura frowned. "but…I am sorry. We had to remove the baby"

He looked up, surprise written in his face. She looked sad. "it…was either the baby or her. It wasn't more than a month old, but…I am sorry." She took a deep breath. "you can…go and see her now."

She didn't have to say the same sentence twice before he had run off into the room beside them. She could feel her legs shake and she needed to sit down. Her eyes closed as she struggled not to break. First her parents…now this. She rubbed the towel against her fingers harder.

Tsunade stood in front of her.

"I don't want to talk to you" she muttered in a low voice.

Tsunade spoke. "are you going to leave him again to get your parents back?"

Sakura didn't answer.

-

**This chapter has not been beta'ed – and some scenes needs a bit more detail. The reason why I am posting is now because I think you've been waiting too long already. The chapter may be disappointing, but the story is nearing its end – maximum six chapters left. Here is the reason for this late update:**

**I go to school. Gasp. Surprise! And this month I have had a lot more test than usual, including two exams. (Where I scored the second highest grade in both of them!). So, I am sorry, I have been too busy – and now my 18****th**** birthday is coming up too. Aaargh! So much to do! Don't worry, the beta'ed version of this chapter will be up tomorrow – meanwhile, enjoy this unusually crappy chapter.**

**Now – what will happen to her parents?**

**Will she leave the camp?**

**What is going on with Kozuki?**

…**how will Rokudaime end?**

**Everyone who enjoyed Rokudaime will most likely be pleased to hear what my next story is. Yet another Narusaku. It is called Daimyo. And that is all you get to know for now. No plot revealing, because I don't want them to be stolen! Haha!**


	26. Book 1 Chapter 26

Sakura's steps seemed heavy and her shoulder weighed down with a burden. It was night, late at night even – about two am. Her steps led her to Naruto's tent, a place she had been several times the following month. Would this be over? Her hand reached out to push the opening aside, when voices was heard. Curiosity getting the better of her, she stayed outside. The first voice she heard was Naruto's.

"Listen; I would gladly go into Konoha to save your girlfriend, but we simply can't afford risking the lives of our finest ninjas! It would simply be a waste of resources. I know your girlfriend means the world to you, but damnit, look at this logically, it just can't work. Unless it is a mission to save someone who will defiantly benefit us in the war, then I can do it, but not…like this"

The ninja marched out, anger clearly showing in his face. Sakura moved away from the opening and let him through. He gazed at Sakura with a grim expression. "I'll bet the Hokage would do anything to save _you_" she clenched her hands and gave him a small bow, which left him puzzled.

Sakura watched the ninja leave, and placed a hand on her chest, above her heart. She had to tell Naruto, having innerly hoped that he would find a way to help her. Help her get her parents back. Now…

…she closed her eyes and clenched her fist, when she suddenly felt herself being pulled into the tent by two strong arms. A head nuzzled itself into her neck, grinning. "You know you can't hide from me out there". Sakura turned her head around surprised and accidentally smashed her forehead against his. They both gave a loud hiss out loud, and Naruto brought a hand to his forehead.

"Okay, Sakura, you better warn me next time you do that."

She snorted and tried to get out of his grip, but he just held her tighter, still grinning. "Hey? Where are you running to? I want to spend some time with you before we divide the camp." His hands held her hips tenderly. "I mean, it will take so long before we'll see each other again"

Sakura's green eyes turned and looked at him lovingly. "Don't go and die on me Hokage-sama, because they'll probably promote me Hokage, and you know that isn't like me."

He smiled and let her go. "I'll see you at the departure"

-

"_Run – run – cling to your life"_

"_There is no use in running – you'll die sooner or later"_

_-_

Tohru stood confused, looking at the angry Kazekage and her father. Naruto was the first to speak. "What are you saying? She isn't here? Are you sure she hasn't gone ahead or something?"

Gaara shook his head, crossing his arms. "She isn't anywhere near the camp, the Hyuugas have looked for her. She has to have left during the night" Naruto grabbed his head, and the brown-haired girl could see the frustration and clearly…the hurt and anger.

"Damnit! Why the hell did she run this time! Damnit!!"

Gaara looked around and motioned the ninjas to continue working with the moving. Naruto needed to sit down.

"Shit – damnit…"

There was an almost unbearable silence, and Gaara sat down too.

Naruto continued. "Why did Sakura run away?"

The Kazekage sighed. "She could've been captured."

The Hokage disagreed and shook his head. "She is unable to get caught without us noticing – she has had to leave…"

Tohru looked down at her feet, clutching the necklace Sakura had given her when she came back. A small pendant from the lightning country.

-

"_Tohru, stay with Naruto – you'll be safe with him, and not with me. He will protect you from the Akatsuki"_

_-_

Kozuki gasped when he felt himself being pulled off the road. It was dark, and he had suddenly felt himself want to run towards something. It was this familiar feeling he felt of family and yet a small lingering feeling of hate. He was scared when he met the green eyes of a woman staring down at him. He was about to scream out when he felt her gloved hand cover his mouth.

Sakura looked at him with a troubled expression, as if she didn't know what she was doing. "Kozuki…stay quiet and everything will be alright"

-

"_I believe you know where Uchiha Sasuke's reincarnation is."_

-

Temari sat up in her bed, the wound in her stomach hurt as she did so, and she needed to lie down. The opening to the tent was pushed aside, and Shikamaru walked in with Ino and their boy Asuma. His eyes showed his inability to sleep, and he looked at her as if he had witnessed the most horrible thing in the world.

"Shikamaru…"

Ino moved past him, and started to inspect her, but Temari stared at him with a confused expression. Ino didn't even say anything.

"Temari – why didn't you tell me?"

She looked even more confused. "told you what?"

There was a silence, until Asuma cried out and reached out for Temari on the bed. Shikamaru crossed his arms. "You and Asuma are going back to Suna, it is too unsafe for a wounded you and him."

"Shikamaru what haven't I told you?"

There was silence and Ino looked between the two of them, before standing up. "I am going to find some new bandages for you Temari-san"

He looked at her, and Temari looked at him, reaching out for Asuma, but was unable to without hissing. With their child safely planted by her side, he finally spoke.

"Why didn't you tell me you were pregnant?"

Her eyes widened. "…… pregnant?"

The room went quiet and Asuma looked from his father to his mother and back again.

"I was pregnant?"

"Sakura was the one operating you when you got hurt. She told me… that it was either the child or you. If you had told me that you were pregnant, this would never have happened, we could have transferred you to Suna and you would be safe and"

"Shikamaru"

He stared at her.

Her voice broke the uncomfortable air.

"Please…I didn't know, just…just don't. Okay?"

-

Two days had passed already, and Naruto sat in his tent. It was only Konoha ninjas that were in this camp now. He and Gaara had decided to divide the camp into Konoha and Suna. Suna was supposed to attack Konoha from the front, while Konoha would do it from the back, since they knew the area better.

He was troubled.

He lay down on his bed, and covered his eyes. He couldn't believe, he simply couldn't. Had he done something wrong? Why was she running away again? Where was she?

Did she even love him?

Frustrated by his trail of thoughts he slammed his hand into the pillow, and closed his eyes hard. Naruto scolded himself. He was supposed to be the Hokage, this shouldn't affect him. He should have known this from the start – he should have known that she would sooner or later run away.

Maybe if he had approached her differently when she came to the camp...? Once again he groaned out loud at his own thoughts, and sat up.

"Damnit – damnit – stop it. She is not here, there is nothing you could do – you got to move on, we have to get Konoha back." He opened his blue eyes when he could smell her on the pillow. Unconsciously, his hand moved across it as if he might feel her just a bit. "It wouldn't have been different than if she had gone with Gaara instead."

He sat up when the memories of their nights together became too much. He stood up, deciding that this time, he wouldn't chase her down.

-

_Sakura turned in the bed, so her head faced the man beside her. Her pink hair sprawled all over the pillow, as she felt a hand stroke it away from her face. Drowsily, she opened her eyes and stared tiredly at him. "__Mmm – Naruto, what is it?"_

_He didn't say anything, and she just sighed, closing her eyes and scooted closer to him. "What is on your mind?"She spoke quietly._

"_Sakura – do you think Sasuke blames us?"_

_The tent went silent._

"_I don't know" her voice didn't sound tired anymore, and he felt her hand place itself on his stomach as if she was seeking comfort. "I...think Sasuke is happy where he is."_

_The crickets could be heard outside, and Naruto brought his arm around her, holding her._

"_Remember...when he died, I said. How can I smile, laugh knowing I killed my best friend. However, now... I can't see what else that could have happened. I mean, it hurts...even today, but...I think this is how it is supposed to be"_

_Sakura closed her eyes, and placed her head near his, taking his hand in his. _

"_...I wouldn't want this any other way" he whispered, and buried his head in the pillow, closing his own eyes._

_-_

Sakura held the tiny Kozuki's hand hard in hers, as they entered the Hokage-tower. She had felt a strange sensation in her body when she stepped into the city. Tsunade had been standing in the large gate, as if she was waiting for her to do this horrible mistake.

She couldn't tell Naruto about her parents – why? If she had done so he would've forbidden her to go, saying her life was much more important in the battle. Gaara would have said the same. There is no doubt that Naruto would have understood her pain, and done his best to comfort her.

However, Sakura would not let her parents be lost to Orochimaru just like Sasuke.

She felt like crying.

Because she was giving Orochimaru Sasuke's reincarnation, in exchange for her parents. She was a horrible human. Kozuki was scared, and held unto her tightly. She had only seen him once or twice, but already it seemed like he had known her his whole life, and entrusted the very same thing to her.

Then she saw him – Kabuto, and her eyes widened.

"How?" was her only response.

He pushed the glasses up his nose, and showed her the way to the office with his arm. "Everything will be explained inside Haruno-sama"

She frowned, but strangely, she found herself being led by Kozuki to the room. The door was made of wood, but to her it was just as hard as metal, and had a stench of blood. The handle felt as if it was burning off her skin –

She really felt like crying.

When she opened the door, all she could see was the monstrous face of Orochimaru at one end, and four Akatsukis turning their heads towards her. Kozuki gave a yelp when she accidentally grabbed his arm too tightly.

Zetsu, Deidara, Tobi and Kisame stood there, all of them staring at her, and then at the child at her hands. Orochimaru smirked. "I told you I could bring her here, let's start the ceremony"

-

_The first time he saw her like that, it scared him half to death. Her clothes ragged and hair messed in a brute manner. She was covered with rashes, open wounds, especially the one that went from her elbow to her shoulder._

_The rain clashing down hard upon both of them, and even with the bijuu inside of him he felt terribly human. Her hard breath told him how hard she had fought, how many wounds she had had to heal, and just how many scars she would get when they got home._

_He had promised her that they would go home._

_However, what worried him the most was the sword that went through her stomach and out on the other side. She looked horribly, bruised and ugly, and it reminded him so much of the Chunnin exam._

_She bit down her lip and slowly and carefully pulled the sword out. It didn't help much that he had almost electrocuted her with the Chidori when he stabbed it through her. Sakura just couldn't make herself hate him._

_The emerald eyes weren't fixed on her blond-haired friend, but on the body of the snake prince, Uchiha Sasuke. With a swift move she turned her head upwards and closed her eyes. _

_Naruto was already crying…-_

_-…so he didn't notice when she slowly began to sob that way. Her whole body shook, the horrible feeling of just standing there fully soaked, with tears streaming down your face, while you cried out loud._

-

Kabuto closed the door behind them, and saw Sakura stand immobile in the middle of the floor. Her green eyes reflected the morning sun that had begun to rise in front of them.

"How...how can you be alive...at the same time as Kabuto?"

Orochimaru chuckled and moved in front of the desk, and crossed his arms. "Kabuto used my powers, that is correct, but I couldn't gain full control of him – but how lucky was I? You two killed the host where my powers were locked. With him gone, I was free to take over one of my older hosts, which I was so lucky to keep in a locked place, where the body doesn't rot."

He could feel how she slowly began to see the connection.

"So, I took over the body, weakened as I was though, I barely had the power to move. Now, Kabuto found me mysteriously, and nursed me back to health. Now...I couldn't get my revenge on Sasuke any longer, but I could get my revenge on Uzumaki Naruto, who nearly destroyed everything I held dear"

Suddenly Kozuki was pulled out of her grasp, and the Akatsuki members jumped forward, and held Sakura tightly, so she couldn't interrupt. "Why is the Akatsuki here then!"

Orochimaru smirked. "I will get Naruto through you – and they will get Naruto too, so they can fulfil their plan – also, I believe they want to get rid of you"

She screamed. "Why!?"

Deidara whispered. "You have not kept our agreement. Tohru has to be with you, and not Naruto-kun or anybody else. So you actually know too much for your own good, we have to get rid of you"

Sakura felt as if she was ready to collapse, but then the door opened and in stepped three persons. A sound ninja and her parents were thrown towards the circle in the middle. Sakura yelled out. "Mom! Dad!"

Both turned their heads towards her, but were thrown to the ground roughly by Kabuto, who bound them to floor by chakra strings. Sakura's mother looked up; her short pink hair had fallen into her face. Her father stared at her pleadingly, as if he was expecting her to save them. However, it was quite impossible with Akatsuki holding her like that.

"Mother!"

Orochimaru stepped forward and took Kozuki and placed him in the same circle. The little boy was crying. Sakura's mother buried her head into the ground out of fear and her husband glanced at her sadly, and then looked at his daughter who struggled in those cloaked men's' arms. He couldn't make out her words, and all he felt was the suddenly chill that went down his spine.

The circle lit up and everyone within it started screaming as if they were experiencing an enormous pain. The room was strangely coloured blue and Orochimaru licked his mouth in satisfaction when both of Sakura's parents and Kozuki fell to the ground – and the earlier sound ninja suddenly fell too even though he was out of the circle.

"Mom! Dad!"

There was silence, and all of the Akatsuki members' eyes were focussed on the sound ninja, who seemed to awaken too. His legs were wobbly as if he had not been walking for years. His white hair turned black, and his face became slightly sharper in its shape.

Orochimaru walked over to him, and placed a hand on the ninja's forehead and pushed it upwards. Sakura's eyes widened.

A perfect copy of a 17 year old Uchiha Sasuke, just without his trademark red eyes. His dark eyes caught hers with that cold look she had seen before.

"..."

Orochimaru spoke. "Do you remember your past life? Kozuki?"

The Sasuke replica looked at him with narrowed eyes. "I am not Kozuki" his eyes went back to Sakura's and the Akatsuki members.

"I am Uchiha Sasuke"

-

Cliff hanger! Only two/three chapters left!


	27. Book 1 Chapter 27

Sakura hit the floor hard when the Akatsuki threw her into the cell, which was hidden underneath the Hokage-tower. She yelped in hurt, and her face was turned downwards, not even bothering to rise. The metal door was shut with a loud slam. Deidara's voice didn't bring her any comfort either.

"don't try to escape. The door is infused with chakra resistant seals, you can't possibly open it without a key"

She didn't answer, and he could see how she lay defeated on the ground. Her body was lying in an almost painful way, but she didn't bother moving. Deidara stared at her, and remembered his fight with Itachi, how he had lost so easily. The cell seemed awfully cold – and it reminded him so very much of the time when he had found Ohuhru dead…killed by the way same person they had just revived.

"Sakura-san."

She didn't answer.

"Tohru-chan…she is twelfe now isn't she? She must soon be grown, her mother would have wanted to see this" he saw her body flinch at the mention of having a mother and she began to shake as if she was going to cry.

"…Ohuhru told me that Tohru is a descendant of the late Shidaime. I have heard that she has shown to have the ability to fuse water and earth like him. It seems that she might surpass even you" he saw water trail down the pink-haired lady's face and unto the ground.

"But, Ohuhru probably would never have wanted this. Wouldn't have wanted her daughter to become a ninja, she told me that herself. I can't see any art in what I am doing" he was surprised that he even bothered telling Sakura this.

Now the sound of sobs were heard, and she finally managed to move her body into a slightly more comfortable way. Her arms clutched her legs painfully tightly, and before he knew what happened – she was wailing.

Torture, intense Akatsuki torture couldn't break her, yet he found himself staring at her wailing by the loss of her parents. Her sobs sounding desperate, almost dying. Her pink hair dull and her face pale.

"they are not dead" he found himself saying. "their souls…merely resting within Uchiha Sasuke's body."

"GO AWAY!"

He flinched.

"I DON'T WANT TO SEE YOU. GO! I HATE ALL OF YOU! YOU COULD JUST KILL ME – I WOULDN'T CARE!"

Deidara frowned. "hmm, we can't – we need Naruto to perform his rescue mission for you"

She hissed and glared at him, while sitting up. The hate in her eyes clearly evident. "you selfish being – what are you getting out of this? Watching other people's pain must be _true_ art to you." She spat on the ground, the tears streamed down her face as a never ending waterfall. "HE SAID HE WOULD LET MY PARENTS GO! AND NARUTO ISN'T COMING! HE SAID THAT IF I EVER RAN AWAY AGAIN, HE WOULDN'T TRY TO FIND ME!"

Her voice echoed in the empty halls and Deidara stared at the broken woman. With a deep frown and eyes deep in thought he turned around quickly and walked away. Sakura didn't even hear her own cries as she drowned in her own misery of failing.

-

Ten days.

Ten days since she had mysteriously disappeared.

Naruto stood in front of his usually useless mirror in his tent, putting on his magnificent red colored cape. His expression was drawn into something very seriously and his hand tucked unto his white shirt underneath. He had left his trademark orange in his trunk, and replaced it with the brightly colored Hokage attire. It didn't feel right any longer.

He tried to stretch his mouth into what seemed like a grin, but it just seemed too forced to be right. His thoughts were on Sakura rather than on the battle he was going to face in merely a few hours. This battle would take days and days to completely, but he had the feeling he was going to win.

No, he was surely going to win.

There was no doubt.

Why wasn't he happy then?

The opening of the tent was pushed aside, and he saw a battle ready Tohru stand before him. She was dressed in an attire matching his, and had eyes carrying too much pain and sadness for a twelfe year old girl. He spoke. "try and cheer up please, I don't have it in me to comfort you now"

"Father"

He looked at her.

"Why?"

He knew exactly what she was talking about and quickly turned his face back at the mirror. "Because she chose to do it on her own – I can't save her all the time" Tohru then looked angrily. "what if it is Akatsuki!? What if they have killed her!? What if she was abducted!?"

"Tohru!" he yelled. She quieted down.

"She chose to do this on her own! She doesn't get abducted – if she doesn't want to be here with _us_, then I can't change her mind!" his hands seemed angry, not on Tohru, but on something far different. "We tried…Tohru, we really tried – but she doesn't have it in her to stay" his eyes became pained. "all there is left is to accept that and just stick together."

The smaller girl pursed her lips. "you're going to find another woman when we regain Konoha…aren't you?"

The Hokage went quiet.

-

"I'm curious" Zetsu spoke, as he looked at the circle in the middle of the Hokage's room. "how is it possible to bring back memories and even personality from your other life?" Orochimaru looked up, and then back down again.

"well, to bring back memories you need a soul as a sacrifice, who can reach out and collect those memories." He licked his lips satisfied.

"then why did you use two souls?"

"Sasuke would be rather useless in a child's body am I right?" he chuckled and looked at the soon to be ready battlefield.

Zetsu frowned and started to mix with the floor. "this will be your end Orochimaru"

-

Three days had passed ever since Sakura was thrown into the dungeon. Sasuke had to be honest when he said that he expected her to be crying loudly when he came, and throw herself over him. What met him was an almost unbearable silence and a sense of remorse. He stepped up the celldoor and looked through the bars – in this silence he had thought that she would be dead.

She was sitting on the bed, back against the wall, staring at her open hands with a dull and empty expression. It was everything he _didn't_ expect to see. He waited for her to say anything, and took his time to notice her looks. Her hair was longer than when he had left this world, but not by much.

Her whole figure much more womanly and her arms carried scars from many battles. Her hands showed even from a distance that she was a master in the art of fighting and that she had punched more than a few bastards with those dangerous fists of hers.

She was an adult.

Then her eyes met his. Ever those green eyes, but instead of an innocent and inexperienced gaze, he met years of pain, wisdom and knowledge. He felt so…different.

"How long?" his familiar voice sang through the room.

She blinked dully, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. She was brokenhearted.

"Eight years"

The surprise was clearly written in his face, and his face came even nearer the bars. "_What_?" his hair fell into his face, and he felt himself grow angry. "Eight years? Then you are…"

"…twenty five" she finished for him, as if she really didn't care.

There was a silence, and then she could hear his hateful voice through the bars. "You…you incompetent woman! You took eight years from me!" his fist slammed into the door in anger. His voice ran through the chambers. He saw her eyes shiver, as if being surprised to see his usually calm nature react in such a violent matter. He hit the door again…

However, before he knew what happened she stood in front of him, behind the door, her fist slammed into the metal, which didn't even budge. He had never before seen her glare at him. "You took my parents away! You took Kozuki away!"

"You ran away! You attacked us! You've made my life miserable!" he could see she was about to cry again, her green eyes showing her emotions so clearly. "I hate you…I wanted you to rest in peace…" she bent her head forwards, resting it against the bars. "You told me I would never understand the pain of being alone."

"You were so wrong" her eyes gazed into his. "I have spent eight years trying to kill Itachi because of you. I've spent the last eight years _running_ for my life because of you! I have lost my parents so Orochimaru could bring you back, because of you!"

"Because of you I have had to leave Naruto!"

She saw his eyes widen, and then narrow. "…"

Sakura felt her hands start to shake, and Sasuke's face was almost touching hers, if it wasn't for the bars between them. His words brought forward a fear she had not wanted.

"You took my life – now I will take his life in exchange, and then I'll get Itachi"

Sasuke then saw it, a flicker of emotion going through her eyes when he mentioned Naruto and then Itachi. His eyes narrowed even more. "What do you know of Itachi?"

"Kozuki" her soft voice spoke, her hands shaking more than before. "Please, go back to Kozuki, he has a family, a brother and…"

"My family is dead, and I'll kill my brother for it"

"Sasuke. Please – you're not supposed to be alive." Her voice was weak, but still had traces of being strong in it. "this is wrong" then she felt his dark eyes stare at her, and she looked at him directly in hers. His mouth was drawn into a tight line, and she saw it…the hate.

"no – you killing me was wrong. I was supposed to fulfill my dreams, and you took it away from me. You are no better than the dope and Itachi"

It tricked something within her. "HE IS NOT A DOBE!" he was taken aback. "NARUTO ISN'T A DOBE! YOU KNOW NOTHING ABOUT HIM – HE…HE IS THE BEST HOKAGE THAT HAS EVER LIVED! BECAUSE OF YOU…BECAUSE OF YOU BOTH HE AND I HAVE SUFFERED!"

"you know something of Itachi don't you?"

Sakura began to sob and let herself fall to the ground, holding herself tenderly, as if trying to comfort her. She could feel his eyes on her, and she knew – Orochimaru would tell him if he asked. It was no secret. Sakura had broken Itachi's neck and nearly killed him. Itachi was as good as dead, since he was unable to fight in his state. His chakra connections to his eyes had been broken, and therefore he was incapable of using the sharingan. However, Sakura had never felt so disgusted with the circumstances her assassination had taken place.

Sasuke looked at her.

"you're still so weak" he spoke, and he left, but not without a strange expression on his face.

Left was a broken woman with a broken heart.

Knowing that she had sacrificed her life in vain.

-

_Itachi looked at her as she stood there in the doorway of the Inn. Her pink hair was drenched with water and he saw her stare at him with a defeated look. He turned towards the waitress and asked for another bottle of sake. He saw the waitress look at Sakura and then went into the kitchen._

_Sakura sat down, opposite from him._

"_they figured it out, am I right?"_

_She stared at the wooden table, stroking the tree almost tenderly. Itachi's red eyes watched her, and then he heard her speak. "does that matter even more?"_

"_giving up doesn't suit you Sakura-san. Talking to the enemy like this? You might break the Hokage's heart"_

"_he hates me"_

_She looked up surprised when he heard him give what seemed like a chuckle. Their eyes connected. "the Hokage is incapable of hating anyone"_

_Sakura's eyes shimmered slightly as if thinking deeply about something. "Itachi-san."_

"_why did you keep Sasuke alive?"_

_He looked at her, and brought the cup of sake to his lips. "what matter does it make now, when he is dead?"_

_There was silence. _

"_it matters everything" she whispered._

_Itachi's red eyes reflected hers, as he slowly placed the cup on the table. "if it matters that much, then kill me Sakura-san"_

_Her eyes widened._

_-_

Rin looked up startled and Kakashi turned to her. "you felt it too?"

Her brown hair fell into her face. "it can't be possible…"

Kakashi then turned his face back towards the capital of the fire-country. "Uchiha Sasuke is alive?"

-

Naruto stood on the gamabunta in front of the large capital of Konoha. In front of him, on a large bird, the Tsuchikage looked down upon him, with his large army of rock ninjas behind him, along with sound ninjas too. The Rokudaime raised his sword and pointed it towards him – no words were spoken.

Then he flicked the sword and sent it flying towards the ground. With a loud slam it shook the ground underneath them, and it was the sign.

Cries, yells, screams could be heard from behind him, and thousand of Konoha ninjas stormed forwards, towards the army of the rocks, who stood ready with their swords and kunais.

Naruto yelled. "forward!" and the huge frog underneath him jumped high in sky, towards the equally enormous bird. The Tsuchikage brought forward his sword and readied it for the impact. The Hokage folded his hands and yelled. "kage-bunshin no jutsu!" and beside him appeared more then one hundred clones.

They landed on the bird that began to fell due to the new burden on it. The Tsuchikage drew his sword through them, turning every single one into stone, before they puffed. He then felt a fist collide with his face.

Brown eyes met blue.

-

Sakura sat with her head between her legs, not noticing the chaos in the hallways. People running back and forward, kunais colliding – then a gigantic explosion that must have destroyed at least some of the walls out there. Her eyes were closed and she slowly fell to the ground.

-

Naruto's hand trusted forward, having created a rasengan faster than ever before. The Tsuchikage tried to block it, but was blasted backwards, and landed near the bird's tail. The hokage hovered in the background, and raised himself. His eyes red as the purest blood.

It didn't scare the Tsuchikage, and he rose too. The bird was falling towards the ground fast, and screamed at the Tsuchikage to lighten the weight, or else he would disappear. It didn't seem to reach his ears though, as he jumped towards Naruto with an almost scary speed.

Swords collided, and on top of the bird, two kages fought to gain control of the other. He slashed, cutted, evaded and blocked, but yet, he couldn't hit and neither could Naruto.

The battle underneath them was already busy, and full of screams and cries, that was overshadowed by the sounds of jutsus and swords slamming into the other. The brown eyes of the Tsuchikage was too much for Naruto to look at – he couldn't bear it.

Slowly, ever so slowly, a red chakra formed itself around him, and one tail emerged. Naruto cried out his misery, and it could be heard miles away.

-

Shizune snapped her head upwards. She had been busy making sure the innocent people of Konoha was hidden away within the chambers in the mountain. Iruka looked at her, and both of them knew.

Naruto was back.

-

The bird disappeared underneath them, and both of them fell to the ground. Swords clinged against each other, as they both struggled to gain the upper hand. Then the Tsuchikage saw something rather strange. Naruto jumped back and landed in something. That something was merely a tree that grew one thousand times faster than a normal tree. Within that tree sat a small girl, not much older than twelfe.

Naruto gave her a thumbs up. "okay! Tohru! Forward!" she nodded and slammed her hands into the thrunk, and both of them flew with the newly created branch towards the Tsuchikage, who raised his sword. However, before he noticed what happened, the smaller girl slammed her fist into the three trunk and it broke into a million pieces – making the Tsuchikage fall.

Naruto then trusted his rasengan into the body, but it only turned into solid rock. He looked at Tohru and then at the battle underneath them. They were inside Konoha _already_.

He jumped down from the branch while holding Tohru and landed on the ground, which were full of corpses and discarded weapons. He held unto the girl tightly, and then sprinted forward. "I'm going into the Hokage-tower, I have a weapon in there I have to use"

Tohru nodded, and before she knew of it, she found herself flying over the Konoha wall. The archors began to shoot their arrows at them, but Naruto merely used his chakra tail to melt them all away. He landed on the house roof, and sat Tohru down quickly. "Tohru! You go down and help all the others, shield them with your trees if possible"

She nodded again and jumped away, while he jumped across the buildings – merely brushing every ninja away he met. It didn't take him long before he stood outside the hokage building and ran as fast as he could up the stairs, while avoiding every trap.

The door to the hokage room was already open though.

And Orochimaru lay on the floor dead, with a very familiar sword through him. Naruto's eyes widened. It was the sword Sasuke once used.

The window was open and he saw to his surprise a strange circle in the middle, which Orochimaru had been busy erasing. He bent down and sniffed to it. It smelled strangely like Sakura's parents, and a boys odour too. He narrowed his eyes. There was no sign of murder, but Orochimaru probably was able to kill without spilling blood.

He then quickly walked towards the wall, and drew a sign on the wall with his finger. The wall disappeared and he saw the weapon. The yondaime's sword.

Naruto then grabbed it in his hand, and ran out the room and down the stairs, but didn't stop at the exit, but kept going, until he reached the very strange cell rooms. Orochimaru might have kept some of his warriors in the cells – it would be so like him.

A ninja appeared in front of him, and hit him with his kunai. Naruto avoided it though, and slashed him down with the sword, which went through him smoothly. He didn't have time for this.

He kicked the door open and killed the ninja carrying the keys. He quickly ran from one end to the other, opening the cells. People came out, praising him, some even wailing at the sight of him rescuing them. The Rokudaime was back.

He was back.

Naruto grinned when he was embraced by a very grateful woman, who continued to kiss his cheeks, even though they were tainted blood. He pushed her away. "hey hey! Don't worry, Konoha will be ours before long! Right!" and he continued down the many hallways.

He opened one of the doors, expecting yet another person to exit and embrace him, but the cell was strangely quiet. Naruto narrowed his eyes and opened the door fully. His hand burned slightly when touching the metal – the door was chakra infused.

On the floor lay a woman, her face hidden from his sight, and he could barely make out her figure in the darkness. He noticed though that she was still breathing. He ran over to her side, quickly trying to help her. "hey! Wake up!"

He shook her hardly, but there was no reaction. He looked around and saw plenty of plates full of food, none of them touched. He groaned. "listen, wake up!"

She mumbled something.

Naruto groaned again, and helped her up. "hey, Konoha is going to be ours, so please stand up – we need all the help we can get" he then felt tears on his arm, and turned her curiously to look at her more clearly.

He felt his breath stop for a second.

"…let me be" she mumbled.

"_Sakura_" he hissed, but stopped when he saw tears trailing down. "why are you here?" he asked. He could hear her whisper. "I was deceived…"

"Orochimaru told me he would kill my parents if I did not bring Sasuke's reincarnation. He lied…he killed them" Naruto couldn't help but get angry. "why didn't you tell me!? Damnit!" he then saw her eyes open, and he saw it…she had known it was him all along.

"because…you wouldn't let me go."

"of course I wouldn't! it is a suicidal mission! You could've died – Orochimaru could have done all these terrible things to you! Damnit! Have you become stupid!"

She didn't answer, and looked away shamefully. Naruto cursed and put her on the ground. "I don't got time for this, regain your strength and come and help us out!" she grabbed his arm, but he merely shook her off.

"Sasuke is alive"

It made him stop when she said those words.

-

**Woah, I sure update fast, huh? One chapter written within twelfe hours – I am sort of proud of myself. I am bit weird about the Sasuke scene, and I don't really like it. One chapter more before the epilogue! Bwahahaha!**

**Ask me questions, I'll answer them as good as I can. Btw, this chapter is not beta'd - none of the lately chapters are, because my beta-reader has mysteriously dissapeared, and too busy working. So - cha ne!**


	28. Book 1 Chapter 28

_Hey people. This is the last chapter of Rokudaime, and I have received quite a lot of questions, and especially complains about why I don't explain some things. Here is a reason why I do not explain things. _

_As you can see, most of the story is from either Naruto or Sakura's POV. This means that in this story we know just as little as they do, without Orochimaru to tell us how this happened then we cannot know what happened, end of story. I can give you answers, because I do have the answers to most of things. Problem is that I don't want that with the story._

_There is no fun with a story, if you can't try and make up theories of your own._

_How come Sasuke being able to be revived, and what is this whole deal with being reincarnated?_

_Kishimoto has in one chapter spoken about reincarnation and the basics of reincarnation are when one is reborn into another body. Sasuke's memories of his former life is brought back by a sacrifice, in the form of Sakura's parents. How do you ask? If we look back at the Chiyo scene, where she revives Gaara then we can conclude that by a sacrifice of another person, then we can revive that person. Concluding, Sasuke is dead, unfortunately he is in another body, but he is dead, and therefore by sacrificing another we can bring him back. He was only an eight year old boy, how would be able to benefit Orochimaru in that way? And just as Orochimaru transferred himself into other bodies, he managed to transfer Sasuke into another body._

_How can Sasuke just all of a sudden kill Orochimaru!?_

again, my answer to this is that we get to know that Orochimaru was very weakened after he himself was brought back to life after Sasuke's death. Even now he was severely weakened, and that means Sasuke is able to kill Orochimaru without much effort.

_How come Itachi still be alive?_

Modern medical science. Broken neck doesn't always have to equal death. And also, Sakura met with Itachi shortly after she was thrown out of Suna, where as you know…certain events happened. Then afterwards she joined a group of refugees, with whom she travelled with for the rest of the year.

_Here is a timeline for all events that has happened._

_8 years ago. Sasuke died  
8+ some months. Sakura leaves  
4 years ago. Tsunade dies. The sound attacks, but is beaten. Naruto becomes Hokage  
2 years ago. Sakura returns to Konoha.  
1 year + some months ago. Sakura is thrown out of Konoha  
five months ago. Sakura is forced back into Konoha._

_-_

_It was his fault that his blood was on his hands._

_-_

Naruto turned and looked at her, his eyes wide in disbelief. "What?"

Sakura's hand on his sleeve was shaking, and she looked at the floor guilty, not answering his question. She could feel he was restless, and wanted to free the people underneath the building as fast as he could. Naruto then snarled in frustration.

"Sakura I don't have time for this! Tell me how the hell that could happen? Have they done something to you to make you think crazy? Only Chiyo-basama could revive the dead!"

Her arm fell to the ground, and he stared at her. Their eyes communicated, it was true. Somehow, some way, he's back. Sasuke's back.

Naruto was about to reach out for her, when there was huge explosion outside the building. The structure shook violently. He grabbed her arms hard and pulled her close to him, as he looked from side to side, trying to see if there were any cracks indicating the building would collapse.

He didn't even notice how she had buried her face into his shirt. "Damnit."

Naruto didn't hesitate and took her by the arms, and dragged her out of the room. However, when she proved unable to walk normally, he lifted her up in his arms. First chance of seeing a Konoha Rebel nin when exiting the cell, he went over and pushed Sakura into his arms. "Watch out for her will you?"

Before the ninja could answer, Naruto was already on his way over to the staircase. A weak voice screamed. "Naruto!"

He tried to ignore it, but turned his head over his shoulder, and smiled. "Don't worry – I'm not the Rokudaime for nothing."

Sakura, as she was roughly hauled away, had this strange feeling that he wasn't talking to her.

-

_And so was her leaving him._

_-_

The stairs up the Hokage Tower seemed longer and time moved slower. Sasuke couldn't be alive… he couldn't be alive! Naruto had to stop one time up the stairs to catch his breath. He slammed his fist into the wall. It cracked.

"Damnit!" his blue eyes stared at the stairs before him. Corpses from both Konoha and sound ninjas lay randomly, and he had to close his eyes. It did nothing for his confidence that Sound ninjas outnumbered his Leaf forces in the corpse count. His fist clenched and he hit the wall again.

The room and smell made him feel dizzy and he had to lean his head against the wall. There was something missing – Orochimaru was dead, but how could that be? There was even Orochimaru's legendary sword in the floor and some strange circle with the stench of blood. The Sound ninjas were demoralized, since their leader had been killed by one of their own. Orochimaru's once ever living body still lying broken to the side.

His eyes snapped open. "A resurrection."

Blue eyes turned to the stairs going down and then to those going up. His hand tightened, and he ran. His feet slammed against the stone floor and he took off the ground. The Kusunagi, 'Grass Cutter' sword felt slimy to Naruto hand but no matter. The enemy ninjas were extremely taken aback by the sudden appearance of the Rokudaime. Penetrating every shield, and cutting through every sword, the Kusunagi obeyed its new owner. No one stood a chance.

With a hit of his hand he slammed a kunoichi who had entered the battle late through the wall, and she gasped for breath. Waiting for the death blow to come down, she saw the curious scene of the Rokudaime open a hidden alcove. Quickly going through the contents, he finally stopped at a katana with a blue sheath. She looked on trying to find her chance to leave this room alive. The blonde man unsheathed the second sword with a bright golden hilt cackled with energy. 'I didn't forget about you,' the sound kunoichi heard him mutter.

Right before a streak of lightning shot over.

-

Hyuuga Neji looked up, byukagan activated. Black hair falling into his face as he dried off the blood from his lips. He bared his teeth like an animal and spread his arms, fingers slowing closing as he collected chakra in his fists. Neji snorted. "Why hide when I can see you anyway!"

Neji jumped forward, smashing his fist into the wall, and a surprised ninja jumped to the side. However, the Hyuuga quickly regained his posture and smashed his fist into the ninja's cheek, and brought a knee to his stomach. The sound ninja gasped, and barely registered when he found himself flying into a wall.

Neji turned again, spinning around as the archers fired arrows at him. A simple kaiten was an unconscious move for the veteran warrior. The archers saw the returning arrows back but it was already too late. 'You guys are no TenTen, none of you assholes are'

The Hyuuga panted and clutched a wounded side, and closed his eyes. Neji hissed when the pain came back, and was about to fall, but made himself stand up.

-

"_So! Neji-kun! Let's embrace our youthful spirits and train together!" the green beast spoke as he proudly hit his chest._

_The Hyuuga kid looked at him unaffected. "Not today"_

"_Oh! Then another day Neji-kun! One day I'll defeat you!" _

_-_

Yamanaka Ino rushed up the stairs of the Hokage Tower swiftly and surely. She took confidence in only having to finish off ninjas that lay about or tried to leave. Shikamaru's plan of securing the Tower first was a success, Naruto must be in his office taking care of one of the high profile targets. Sai was behind her, running at Ino's pace while constantly communicating with the captains on the field.

When Ino first intersected Sai on the way to the tower, they allowed themselves a brief moment for themselves. Without prompting, the emotionally stunted ANBU soldier and the blonde bombshell wrapped each other in a tight embrace, forgetting they were in a dangerous battle situation. Surprising Ino, it was Sai who did not want to let go. She pushed him away, they exchanged no words and immediately entered the building. It was their job to set up a central command center at the tower.

It was worry for the Rokudaime that pushed their bodies to go as fast as they can.

_-_

The Konoha leader growled as another ninja dared charging at him. He was rewarded with a vicious punch to the face. There was no gentle fist, Neji had to start conserving his chakra. There was absolutely nothing in his punches anymore. With every ninja that approached he imagined him or her being the one killing Lee, Tenten or Hanabi. It made him angrier. Fifteen more Sound and Rock ninjas jumped into the field.

Hyuuga Neji took out his two Kamas and swung them around in a short warm up kata. He always did find the clan taijutsu style a bit too… bloodless.

Never truly satisfying.

-

The two spy masters of Konoha finally reached the top of the Hokage tower, gasping for breath. Ino who had spent majority of her time inside Konoha, while Sai was outside of it, had as clear of an idea about the invasion's condition as was possible. With their combined skills, they knew more than the enemy. The penthouse floor was a disaster area. There were more corpses here than any other floor. Ino's nose wrinkled at the smell of electrocuted flesh hanging in the air. They stepped through the open Hokage office doors to see their leader busily working with an electronics console. Sai and Ino saluted briskly, neither hiding the relief that they didn't have to get involved in a major league fight. Orochimaru's mangled body did not go unnoticed.

Naruto looked up with a smile and stepped aside to let the experts handle the functions of getting security systems, communications and other electronics up and running. Sai, immediately jumped at the duty while Ino remained standing in front of the desk.

"Ino, what's the situation?"

The Yamanaka professionally held herself up straight "Hokage-sama, the East and South sections of our assault teams are faltering. The captains want to pull back."

"How bad are our casualties?"

"South is the only field where its unacceptable. The enemy is making their stand there and Shikamaru believes they plan on surging north."

"What's his recommendation?"

"Pull back to the north and rotate all our forces, sweeping Konoha en masse."

At this the Rokudaime stood still, thinking furiously on his options. He nodded to himself as he made his decision and moved away from the desk and to the window. Both Ino and Sai waited for his orders, patiently.

Sai had successfully rewired the comm. networks to broadcast to citizens and their forces separately. It was only a matter of time that they will have all of konoha's infrastructure under control. Still, neither spy masters had a clue what their Hokage was thinking. Then again, no one ever was sure that they did.

Naruto took a long breath and started to go through seals slowly. Blood had reached both his palms and he threw large gobs of it out the window. Seconds later, as the first of his chakra imbued blood hit the ground level outside, a thunderous noise occurred. All in Konoha felt an earthquake emanate from the tower…Gamabunta the Toad Boss has joined the battle. The summons looked through the window to Naruto with grim acceptance. The humongous toad stood regally in armor from head to its large stomach, trusty katana in hand. He flicked his pierced tongue this way and that, testing the armor Naruto had conjured specifically for him, approvingly.

Naruto again went through the same seals and spat more blood out the window, hitting Gamabunta in the head. This time three more toads appeared, all a third the size of their father. Gamabunta's children, the overly intelligent Gamakichi, his younger brother Gamatatsu with equal amounts of fat and muscle and their orange toad sensei Gamakatchi who already had his two hilt less katanas out and ready.

"Everyone, I need you to clear our south. With victory will come sake for you boss and treats for everyone else."

Naruto shouted authoritatively, but with a smile. His demeanor spoke of confidence and strength. The whole Toad family grinned and made off for battle. The thunderous sounds of Gamabunta's hops reverberated throughout the village.

Once the vibrations lessoned, Naruto allowed the smile to drop and slumped in place. He reached out for his chair. Ino grabbed him before he dropped on the floor. She led him to the table with knotted brows and a manic yell taking shape.

"Its fine, Ino"

"Naruto, you're out of chakra already!" She shrieked, voice taking on much higher octaves than needed to break crystal. "We need you ready! Who's ever heard of four summons at once?!"

"I said its fine"

"Naruto you don't even have any more chakra do you?!"

"No." Randomly choosing to stand back up again from the table, and out of Ino's livid face. He turns to both of them. 'Tell the South to combine with the West forces, and then follow Shikamaru's sweeping tactic. Where are our high value targets?'

Sai responded quickly, "Kabuto and the Tsuchikage are approaching the Tower, Hokage-sama. I am dialing in reinforcements"

"No need, Sai. No need." Both officers stopped and stared at Naruto, ready to have another outburst. He looked at them almost laughingly. Smirking as if they were scared for themselves. Sure Kabuto and the Rock's leader were out of their league. Or were they scared for him? Naruto contemplated this as he made way for the stairs to the roof.

"Who needs chakra when you have a blade for each?"

-

"_Iiih! Neji! Sit still will you! We will reach the village soon enough!" Tenten complained as applied the bandage on his arm. He groaned, and they sat there in silence. He then slowly let his eyes gaze at her side-ways._

_Chocalate brown eyes then saw his, and TenTen smiled back. He then quickly grabbed her hand and put it back into his lap. _

"_I am so wrong for feeling this" he said as he squeezed his team mate's hand. She only looked away at this._

"_Too long Neji. Took you way too long."_

_-_

These memories of her, his true love. The one that should have been his but went to his only best friend. Rage overflowed the stoic captain.

One ninja's arrows pierced his shoulder, but Neji didn't stop. He ran as fast as he could towards them, his twin kamas slamming into every person he could get. His feet jumping from side to side – he couldn't take it.

He just couldn't take it!

'Neji, please…take care of them for me. You're their captain…' 

' _You can't die! You can't leave me too! NO FATHER!' The man in green finally succumbed to the Death Gate. _

Reinforcements came to battle the lone Hyuuga on the eastern front. It wasn't enough this day.

-

Sakura was running.

The trees were like a blur as she smashed her feet against the rock solid ground. She was gasping for her breath, and knew he wasn't far away. Sakura was eight years of training ahead of Sakura, and without his real body he had had to have difficulties. Right?

Right?!

Sakura had not meant to give the ninja an elbow into the stomach. She did not mean to ignore Naruto in his fight. She did not mean to find herself running to find the traitor of Konoha – but she was doing it anyway.

One tree.

Two trees.

And there was a kunai flying in her direction. She jumped upwards and landed on a branch, her arms ready to take on anything. Sakura would any day admit it was foolish going out there with no protection or weapon whatsoever, but she was desperate – she needed to do this.

There Sasuke stood, in the clearing, his dark eyes staring at her hatefully. "Sakura"

She frowned and clenched her fist. For a moment she doubted that she could do it. She didn't want to do it, honestly. She couldn't bear having to kill him one more time, or for that matter, having him dying again. However, she had no choice. Sakura knew that Sasuke being alive was the most wrong thing in history. A dead person should remain dead. Especially not one like him.

Now she realized it.

"For all these years I have been searching for a way to redeem myself for you death Sasuke-kun." This certainly seemed to catch him by surprise. "All these years I have been searching for any answer that could tell me if what happened that day was meant to be or not."

"You're crazy" he muttered. Sasuke's new body shuddered involuntarily. An epileptic seizure with lightning passing through his body.

"Now I know the answer." She tightened her fist. "Despite how much I want you to be alive, you cannot bring dead people back – dead people are dead people – and there is no point in trying to save them." Sasuke just stepped back, obviously not believing she could do any harm.

Then he felt it.

The wind pushing in his back, and the flash of reddish knuckles at the side of his face. His black eyes widened.

SLAM.

Sakura was thrown back into the woods by a fist in her stomach. She gasped for breath and the blood slid down from the corner of her mouth. She stared at the large cloak, with red clouds in the bottom. The Akatsuki stood right in front of Sasuke, his fist still hanging in the air.

Sasuke stared at him with an unbelievable gaze. "No…"

The interloper cracked his knuckles. "Haruno Sakura, it is time you stopped interfering with our plans. You have already eliminated three Akatsuki members"

The former Uchiha turned to her, surprised, but not in a good way. "Itachi?"

"Was one of them, but he is not dead…only a weakling" a hand on Sasuke's shoulder made him stop staring at the pink haired woman. "Uchiha Sasuke…we need you."

Sakura's eyes began to flutter, as her surroundings grew darker. Desperately she tried to hear what they had to say, but she fell into the darkness faster than she wanted to. Her hand reached out.

Then it was pitch black.

-

"_Sasuke-kun"_

-

Far away, a lone figure, with heavy eyes and dark hair turned. His usual ponytail had been replaced with a hairstyle that could easily match that of his smaller brother. His neck was fully bandaged and his hand trembled from time to time.

Uchiha Itachi could feel the loosing battle.

-

Naruto struggled to stand up straight, but pure force of will made him stand up, and face the faces of Kabuto and the Tsuchikage. He had lost too many fights in his life to loose this.

-

A/N: skipping some scenes. I've decided to leave you with a cliffhanger, and instead ask you a vital question concerning this story.

How many of you wishes to see a sequel to this story? If you don't then I'm gonna end it in…next chapter or the chapter after that. If you do, then I'll continue roku, but instead calling this part for book one, and the next for book 2.

Selina over and out!

Review if you please.


	29. Book 1 Chapter 29

A unbearable silence had managed to spread itself across the ever so peaceful town of Konoha. The breaths of thousand warriors finally becoming soundless as they one after one either fell from exhaustion or because they had caught the sight of three persons standing on the wrecked Hokage tower.

Some would never have belived that time would ever have the ability to simple stand still, but to the ninjas whose fate happened to be that of death, they had never felt such timelessness in their life. It was as if three gods were gathering, and it was time to determind the fate of the world. A cape flew behind the Hokage as he raised the sword towards the darkening sky.

Hinata who were running in the opposite direction, could not help but turn her head – and somehow, it was as if behind Naruto stood all of the hokages, all of them ready to face the treath that would vanquise Konoha.

And never before had she hoped that somehow would come and help out her loved one, because even she knew that she was incapable of standing in front of the two very same persons and have survived. Her hands shivered with fear, and yet she managed to turn her head back on the road, seeking out what was possible left of her family.

-

Sasuke's footsteps could not be heard against the heavy ground as if he was a mere ghost. A hand holding his head, he tried desperatly to gather a clear view of his thoughts. His mind was a mess of all sorts of memories, people he had never known in his former life – but he loved them passionatly, his family. As soon as he saw that kind lightning woman's face, it was replaced with the horrible image of his former parents lying on the ground, bleeding – Itachi hovering above them.

He swung a hand to the side and hit a tree painfully. "get out of my head! I don't need this!" His hands dug into the tree hard, as he bent his head forward momentarilly, breathing hard. "I'm Uchiha Sasuke. I'm Uchiha Sasuke – I.am.Uchiha.Sasuke – I am Uchiha Sasuke!"

-

"_give the boy his life back Sasuke" Sakura's tired and worn face looked at him with such unfamilarity that he felt sickened just staring at her._

"_He deserves the chance to live"_

_-_

"GET OUT OF MY HEAD!"

a branch cracked and he looked up startled. Not because there was someone there, but because he had not detected it before now. The sight of a calm and collected Lee made Sasuke narrow his eyes. "what are you doing?"

Lee's voice was far too clear for Sasuke's liking. "Oh. So you have returned? I guess time moves faster than it did back in my youthful days! Hahaha – No, I am actually here to pick up one of my loved ones, yes, no one should leave this place alone!"

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "Well – good for you, now get out of my way" Lee moved and Sasuke tensed his body, still confused with Lee's friendlyness and lack of attacking him. Should he not be surprised that Sasuke was no dead any longer.

Before he could ask though, Lee's smile that reached the corner of his eyes, informed him with quite a startling truth. "I see that you're still able to look through the spiritrealm – guess being dead still has not worn of you"

Sasuke then realised.

Lee was not even alive.

"who are you picking up!?"

Lee's smile didn't fall. " a mutual friend of ours, who fell in battle"

"Who!?"

Of course Sasuke knew – of course he knew.

-

Naruto's hand shook violently as he pointed the sword to the sky, his face drawn into a grimace showing how much pain he had to endure. Kabuto and the tsuchikage smiled confidently, their expressions showing clearly what they expected from this fight.

The sword started bussing and summing, collecting energy from the dangerous sky above. Kabuto's smile lowered slightly, and readied his perfected chakrascaples. "we gotta get this over as fast as possible" he muttered to the tsuchikage, who then started his many hand signs.

The sky chattered and just as the tushikage launched an earth barrier towards him and Kabuto jumped with amazing speed, Naruto unleashed the sword's power, and lightnings struck with such great force that the whole sky lit up and blinded every person near. The floor jumped open and giant pieces of concrete flew into the air, by the just the force of the first strikes.

The tsuchikage's barrier were destroyed and flew over the fence, and he widened his hazel eyes in disbelief. All of his records spoke of the Hokage only element was wind, and here he was, witnessing the exact opposite of what it had said. Lightning was surperior to earth.

His feet landed swiftly on the metal fence as he made the handseals with a speed surperior to most people. Kabuto already charging at Naruto, having avoided the lightnings, but Naruto swords clashed against Kabuto, who jumped up and landed on the blades. His feet made the metal cling almost like a pleasant melody, but Naruto saw the chakrascaples come towards him, while he was unable to move at all.

Naruto lifted his foot and swung himself around in a circle. The force of the air hitting Kabuto on the blades, made him fall off and hit the ground. The hokage made a futile attempt to strike him with his swords, but in vain, since to his left the tsuchikage's hands grabbed Naruto's left, and threw him towards the railing.

He hit it with his right shoulder, which made a nauseas crack and he knew he would be unable to use that arm from now on.

One of his swords hit the ground, and created a sound so frightening for the people of Konoha. Naruto saw black dots in front of his eyes, and the only sound he could hear was the coughing of Kabuto, and the heavy footsteps from his enemies. He had to close his eyes several times, and the feeling of the kyuubi starting to heal his shoulder, felt not at all as comforting as a medic's touch. Instead it had the sensation of soem bitterness and heavy burden that was placed upon him. He had for long felt sick because of the kyuubi's influence.

Maybe he should have consulted Shizune about this before – or maybe even Sakura.

He gave a breath of surprise and moved his head swiftly to the right, as the chakrascalpe cutting his left cheek.

His eyes focussed on the look of Kabuto in front of him, and his left hand quickly grabbed his sword, which to both the tsuchikage's and Kabuto's surprise, was moved with incredible speed. Kabuto must have been majorly surprised when he looked down himself to see a sword go straight through his stomach. Naruto's chest heaved up and down in deep breaths, and Kabuto's black eyes closed momentarilly, before he gave a loud laugh.

"guess you proved to be the better one in the end, Naruto-kun."

Naruto's eyes narrowed and pushed the sword further into his body, and Kabuto jolted from the pain. "I cannot forgive you" said an unnaturally dark voice from Naruto, and the glittering sound of lightning getting charged. "I don't hate Sasuke...and I never will – but...you and...Orochimaru. You. Are. Two. Sick. BASTARDS!"

Kabuto flew back as lightning went through his body, and hit the floor. Naruto couldn't see if he was dead or alive. He hoped for the first option, since his hands were shaking because of exhaustion. The tsuchikage stared at him amazed and backed away when Naruto made a motion to stand up. The tuschikage glared and took another step back, the pole in his hands cracking from the force he held it with.

"..."

Both kages stared at the other.

Naruto could feel the kyuubi.

-

"_Naruto."_

_-_

The chakra moving towards his body, forcing itself to take control. His nails grew bigger, and his teeths bared. His hands cracking as the bones grew bigger as well. His eyes evidently red, and the tuschikage couldn't help but feel some fear towards the person in front of him.

-

"_Naruto"_

_-_

The red boiling chakra formed around him, and Naruto bend himself down in an animal like pose, ready to charge at his enemy. The tuschikage realised who this person really was.

-

"_Naruto"_

_-_

And to everyone's surprise.

The tuschikage fled.

-

"_Naruto"_

-

The sky was illuminated by the rising sun, and the sword the rose above the falling body shone almost heavenly. Pein's blue swirly eyes watched as the body of the pink haired woman before him continued to lie still, still breathing. His hands tightened on the sword. She was an unecessary being in this world.

And so the sword fell.

-

"_NARUTOOOOO!"_

-

The city saw it.

The rock gave up and fled.

It could not be possible – but it was.

Hinata's hand steadied the weakened Neji as he rested against her form, exhausted from battle, their hands intertwined. She knew that her and Neji had in some way or another always been close, and there had always been some forbidden spark between them. However, their hearts belonged to two so everdifferent people. Hers wasn't dead – he was just – who he was. Neji's on the other hand – she was dead. Neji's closests family was dead.

The thought alone made her clutch Neji closer. She knew where she wanted to be. She wanted to be by the side of her ever so beloved Hokage, but the sight of Neji so bitterly crushed and alone, made her push away her wants, to somehow comfort her cousin.

Neji's hair was always so soft.

Kiba stared at the tower, looking at the fleeing tuschikage, and then careful glanced at the two beside him. Neji's head resting on her chest, as she bent forward, cradling him motherly as she rested her head against his hair.

It was such a twisted world these days.

Was this what war did to those who were innocent?

-

"_Naruto – don't let the kyuubi overtake you"_

_-_

He couldn't stop it, the continued flow of chakra took over his body, batteling him for consiousness. The skin on his hands were ripped of, and blood coloured the chakra dark red, and he glared at the sight before him. A horrific roar filled the city. Naruto's claws dug hard into the concrete floor, as he struggled to regain control of himself.

He had to stop himself.

He couldn't let the Kyuubi win!

And damn – he could feel how the chakra poisoned his ever pore and every cell – comanding him to give in.

He couldn't.

He couldn't.

He had promised them.

He had promised them all!

"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUUW!"

-

"_please..."_

-

"SASUKEEEEEEEEEE!!!"

He closed his red coloured eyes, and struggled to get a grip of himself. He had to make things right, Sasuke had to be killed. Naruto's breath was hard, and he reached out for something – someone.

"Naruto"

A hand touched his shoulder, and he looked up startled.

Tsunade's face had always looked angry, and it still did – but she as a beauty none the less.

"come back"

As the words were almost a keyword, the chakra dissapeared and he embraced the woman in front of him. The smell, the sensation, everything was just as he remembered it. It was right. Tsunade was here, then everything would be alright. The kyuubi dissapeared completely from his mind.

"I'm so glad you're here"

He could feel her smile. "I'm alright Naruto. Everyone is okay"

"Neji? Kiba? Hinata? Tohru? Gaara? Everyone?" he asked with a child's hope.

"yes. Everyone"

"Is...Sasuke and Sakura okay?"

"..."

He nuzzled himself closer to Tsunade's chest, whimpering.

"Naruto-kun!"

His eyes jumped open and looked around. Instead of feeling the warmth of his selfproclaimed grandmother, he was facing the cold and hard concrete roof. Shizune's hand touching his wounded shoulder with so much care, that he could have cried. He smiled. He was alive.

"I did it"

And she smiled.

And so did Iruka who sat beside her.

-

Sasuke didn't look back.

-

Hinata cried when Neji opened his eyes.

-

Gaara, Temari and Shikamaru all were there in time to help Naruto out.

-

Somewhere in the woods, all alone, lay the figure of a woman, her pink hair spread across her face. Her fingers dull and lifeless, with a sword penetrating her body.

-

She lay there.

-

"_NARUTOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"_

_-_

_A/N: end of book 1_

It took me a long time – for a good reason. I had lots and lots of homework, and lots of emotional stress on top of it. Also, I'm so bad at fighting scenes.


	30. Book 2 Chapter 1

"_Naruto, open your eyes"_

-

Naruto's eyes fluttered open as he met the familiar sight of the ceiling of his bedroom. It was damaged like so many other things in the city, but the ceiling remained beautifully decorated as always, illustrating the beginning of the world.

Two men facing each other.

And a woman guiding them from above – showing them towards misery. God's hands through the villain hands of a woman. All beginnings in every religion always took the time to explain why women were so viper like.

His body ached so badly.

He groaned and turned the side, meeting the morning sun – someone had entered his room and pulled away his curtains. Naruto's eyes caught the large and masculine body of his tutor. Jiraiya.

A small curse left the weakened Hokage's lips, and he lifted himself up on his elbows, despite the pain. Jiraiya looked down on him with crossed arms and a frown, obviously not pleased with Naruto's happy expression.

He broke the silence.

"I've got news"

Naruto stopped moving upwards, and the smile disappeared, before he dared to even respond to that. "Nothing?"

The Sannin closed his eyes and leaned back against the windows. "First, the search teams found Chouji lying in the forest, apparently having fought an Akatsuki – or so he claims. He's in the surgery room right now, getting his arm removed – he won't be able to use it any longer. Also, there are no reports or anyone ever having seen Haruno Sakura. Some saw her leave the village – but despite that, I believe I can safely presume she's deceased..." He decided to stop and watch for Naruto's reaction – and when finding it proper to continue, he did.

"Akamaru found a large pool of blood in the outer forest areas – We believe it might be Sakura's, and we're currently testing it in the lab. If it is her, then it is too much blood for her to survive without immediate treatment. I believe she's dead and then a forest animal might have taken her body, I do not know – we'll continue the search tomorrow, and see if she's found or not."

Naruto's eyes turned downwards in clear sadness and obvious regret – perhaps he should've said something to her before leaving.

"Second, I've been asked to tell you that Tohru-chan is getting treated in the hospital for minor wounds. She did fabulous in the battles Naruto, you can be proud. Shikamaru has taken your seat temporarily, until you're back on your feet"

Naruto looked as if he was in despair, but then smiled at the mentions of Tohru and Shikamaru. Jiraiya saw it and then turned serious. "The Kyuubi"

The Rokudaime turned his head. "what about it?"

"it's poisoning you."

"..." Naruto went silent.

"Shizune is trying to do some research, finding out to stop the poisoning, but the ache in your body won't lessen Naruto" The Sannin looked undeniably strong as he stood there, the sun illuminating his body, giving him an almost godlike posture. "You've signed your own death sentence by using up that much chakra against Kabuto and the Tsuchikage."

Naruto gave a mild cough, and looked the other way, before sitting up fully. "guess I've got no time to waste then – need to go on and protect Konoha"

"Let someone else do it Naruto, you need to rest – we don't know if the poisoning will worsen if you decide to travel – I would defiantly advice you not to."

Naruto placed a hand on his knee, and pushed himself up, breathing heavily from the pain. "it's my duty as Hokage"

"You start to sound like Tsunade" Jiraiya grinned, rubbing the place where his left arm should have been. Naruto let the sheet slide off, revealing a tattered and scarred body, his chest bandaged from top to toe, a bitter smile claiming his lips.

"I need to redo alot of things too. I need a search team for Sasuke – send Kakashi and Rin-san, and someone from the Hyuugas or Kiba's clan, can't remember their name now." he rubbed his forehead and bent down to take his clothes, and with extreme carefulness put them on. The rough texture against his skin felt uncomfortable.

"I will come with you" Jiraiya spoke with authority in his voice and stepped away from the window. "I need to make sure the Kyuubi doesn't do anymore damage to you"

Naruto's hand still rested on his forehead and looked up at Jiraiya, scanning the older man. "aren't you a bit too old? It's not like you can protect me that well again" A smirk came to the Hokage's face, and the older man laughed ironically.

"It's not like you can stop me kid. Now, get on some clothes and get ready, I'll go and talk with what's remained of the council." and with deep and dark steps he left the room, by pushing the shoji doors aside.

When Naruto was sure the Sannin had left, the smirk fell and he needed to sit, and grabbed his stomach in agony. After years of being a ninja, one should think he was used to being in pain – but this time it was different. Exhausted from the battle, even though it was at least three days ago.

He wished at times that his blessing of enourmes power didn't have so many disadvantages as it had. The Kyuubi in the end was not worth it. At those thoughts, Naruto leaned back and lay down in his bed.

-

"_Naruto!" she weakly yelled, and he turned around. "don't worry, I'm not the Rokudaime for nothing"_

_For some reasons she felt that he wasn't even speaking to her._

-

Shizune's hands moved gracefully over Naruto's body, her fingers tingling with the sensation of the chakra flowing through them. They touched his body ever so lightly, but to Naruto if felt like a thousand knives piercing his body.

It was all the kyuubi's fault.

Her dark eyes gazed worriedly at the smaller girl at her side, who with her limited teachings by her lost mother, tried her best to feel what Shizune felt. Tohru's hands felt a tingling yet bitter sensatation whenever it rested over the blue poisoned areas of his body. Naruto's blue eyes had this dull expression within them – his mind having traveled to places Tohru knew exactly where.

Shizune gave a sigh and moved her hands away. "we're done Tohru-chan"

The smaller girl removed her already rough fingers and placed them in her lap, drying off the small amount of blood on her apron.

The elder woman sat beside Naruto and placed a hand on his forehead to see if he had a fever or not. Naruto eyes flickered shut for a short while, as Shizune reached down and whispered something in his ear, which could not be heard by Tohru.

A figured stood in the door and the girl turned her head to meet the stern face of Hyuuga Neji. He eyed her shortly, before motioning her out of the room. She was hesistant, but did so anyway. As she left the smelly room, Neji's hand rested upon her shoulder.

"I felt you should take a break" he spoke with his hoarse voice. The injuries he had himself was far from healed, and the only reason he could stand today was his persistance.

She dried her hands in the apron again and looked at the floor. Neji's hand pushed her quicker away from the room. "I'll be honest with you Tohru-san" he said with a careful voice, making sure they were the only ones to hear what was about to be said.

"it's the kyuubi. The monster that is inside him that is hurting him" it was said in such a dull voice that Tohru doubted that this fact even had hurt the man walking beside her. She clenched her fists.

He continued. "poison."

She nodded.

"It's the Kyuubi who is trying to finally get control of Naruto. The more he uses the kyuubi the more it has the opportunity to take over the body. Naruto's body may be used to slight kyuubi poisoning when he lets it escape, but this time it is more than what Naruto is used to."

The sun was setting.

"Either he'll have to give in to the kyuubi, or both he and the kyuubi will die together."

Neji didn't understand why she wasn't crying.

"It could be a part of the Akatsuki's plan"

He stopped.

Tohru kept walking.

-

_A pair of lips brushed his temple so every lightly. Sasuke opened his eyes and met those eyes of his mother. He was gazing at her, his face reflected in those watery eyes. He closed his eyes in content, when two pair of hands touched his cheeks that didn't feel like that of his mother's. A pair of lips decended heavenly upon his, when his eyes jumped open._

_Those eyes were green._

_Dull green._

"_eight years"_

_The mouth tasted so bitterly of blood._

"_give him back to us"_

-

Sasuke opened his eyes and took a deep breath in surprise. His hands clenching the sheet hard.

"shit"

He sat up angrily and pushed away anything that was placed on his nightdesk. One should think that the Akatsuki made sure that every member was gathered at the same place, but no. He was sent to a small foreign village in the lightning, so he could gather information.

He didn't care about that.

He cared about Itachi!

For the first time the eyes that had met him in the dream lasted through the night, wasn't that of his brother, but those of another.

"shit! Leave me alone!"

-

_She looked so old._

-

Shikamaru sat beside Naruto, his hand in his lap as he adjusted his clothing. They had been talking for a while – about Gaara, Temari and suna in general. Things were going very well and they had already repaired most of the damages on their city. Naruto could hear that Shikamaru wished to come back to his family.

"I'm sorry" he spoke.

It made the shadow nin look up, but there was no obvious surprise. "you better be. Your job is so tiring. You know how many people who wanted to see me today? It was horrible" he could feel a laughter that never escaped his mouth.

Naruto looked ever so tired. "Temari and Asuma are doing great. She's still hospitalized though. Her inner wounds are completely healed, but her outer wounds are too major for her to return to her job as a ninja."

"gaara?"

"You know him. In the end he is just like you. A workaholic. He has been in his office twenty four seven ever since he returned. He found something very interesting about the Akatsuki you might want to know."

At that Naruto shot his face towards Shikamaru, his eyes widened and his fist glanced. "what?"

"I can't tell you. It is far from safe here. When you get to Suna, he will most likely tell you." Naruto's face grimaced, knowing that it was far from safe where they were at the moment. With less than a week having passed since they won, Konoha was tremendously vulnerable towards enemies.

Something had to be done.

"I'm leaving" Naruto said, to Shikamaru's big surprise.

"I'm leaving so I can make sure our country is safe. I'll go and talk to the countries that rest between us and the rock country. I am sure they will agree to not cooperate with the rock – especially with Suna being on our side, they can't do anything but agree to warn us or protect us against the rock, if that were to happen"

Shikamaru leaned back in the chair. "so what you're saying is that you're forcing me to sit in that damn Hokage chair for a few weeks?"

There was a silence, before Naruto bitterly laughed. "maybe forever…"

This caused the usually calm and bored ninja to finally widen his eyes, and tighten his lips, before he spoke the word that could have been forbidden in so many contexts, but this was Naruto, he could only speak it out loud.

"the kyuubi"

A small ray of the sun fell upon half of Naruto's face, making Shikamaru finally see the damage a monster like the kyuubi could do to a human like Naruto. The scars and the almost painfully dry skin covered the so tattered man.

"you're dying" he said, as if it wasn't that of a big deal.

Naruto smiled. "I am really sorry."

Shikamaru shrugged, before leaning forward, biting his lower lip. "it's a shame that neither Sakura or Tsunade are alive. Shizune is a good medic, but I doubt she'll be able to figure out how to deal with what's going on inside you…" he continued speaking, as if this was his way to comprehend what Naruto was telling him.

"Shikamaru – it's alright, I'm fine"

"…"

"say hi to our friends, Lee and tenten you know."

"I will"

It was such an uncomfortable atmosphere.

-

_Open your eyes._

_-_

A/N: what's going on?


	31. Book 2 chapter 2

Dust

Dust.

To naruto it seemed that all beings in the world had turned to dust, every piece of the earth, dust. It was dust, dust, dust. It was strangling him as he walked along the trail to the nearest country, which could be three to five days away. His feet were heavy as he dragged them across the surface of the firecountry. It was all dust.

The grass that broke through the surface of the earth, grasping for the sun. desperate – desperate.

His breathing was heavy and tough. To him it was like there wasn't enough oxygyn in the world and he felt like dying. It was all dust, invading him, making his wounds, lungs and head hurt. He couldn't stop though, he had to go on, because he never been one to stop walking.

He never had.

His eyes hurt as well, and he could barely see the road ahead of him. It concerned Jirayia when he grabbed Naruto's arm, the poor man didn't even react. His movements were slow and dull and he looked like he was on the edge of sleeping.

Jirayia sighed. "I'm too old for this" Before Naruto knew of it, his eyes had turned from the ground to the sky above him, which seemed for once bright blue, but then his head landed on something not so soft. A shoulder. He felt the elder man snack his arm around him, as he tried to carry the man bridal style, even though it wasn't that easy when you lacked an arm.

"you should've stayed home kiddo. It's too tough on you"

There was a silence for a while.

"Ero-sennin. How were my father and mother?"

It didn't seem to catch the elder man by surprise and he hoisted Naruto up even more, and smiled at the road ahead.

"your father. He was a great man. You look just like him and he was just as great as you. I knew him quite well and if I have to admit, I've always looked upon him as a son of my own. So I guess that makes you my grandson, doesn't it Naruto?"

He saw the sick looking Hokage look at the sky, with a bright smile on his face. "my mother, my mother, tell me about her"

"Beautiful woman."

"_more_"

"hahaha, if you ask that of me then. She was a beautiful redhead, a talented ninja as well, but when she was younger she was just like you. It amazes me sometimes what hormones do to you kids when you come of that age. An amazing woman"

Naruto sighed and the sky above him still welcomed him with a cheerful smile.

-

"_there's a reason why we die isn't there?"_

_-_

Naruto blinked as if remembering something important.

-

"_I mean, if we don't die? What then? If Sasuke had not died, then we wouldn't be here and if we weren't here would that mean the world would be better?"_

_-_

There was the dust again.

-

"_death, maybe it isn't that bad"_

_-_

Blue, that was the colour of Naruto's eyes.

Sometimes he wondered whether or not it truly was that colour.

-

Shizune moistened her lips as she gracefully stitched the wound together on the fallen ninja. Pearls of sweat travelled along side her cheek, like water seeking the ocean. Her hair clung horrible to her face and her eyes were tired and red. Fourteen hours with almost no breaks, trying to save many of the fallen ninjas – many had asked for loved ones as they lay there, screaming with pain.

Chouji had asked for Ino, his mother, his father, Shikamaru and food. It was no surprise for the talented medic nin.

Ino had asked for Sai, Sasuke, Sakura, her parents and Naruto…

That had been a surprise.

Shikamura on drugs spoke of beautiful flowery fields, with his child and soon to be wife and Naruto…

She had thought she would lose him.

Tohru had been quiet as the woman had placed bandages around her arms and head. For a girl this young it had been a miracle for her to even survive a battle like this. What a horrific feeling it is. To stand on the side, watching children dying for a futile purpose – or it could seem like that.

Naruto…

He had screamed, cried, even in his sleep – calling for dead friends, for a dead mother… and a dead girlfriend…if Sakura would ever be qualified as that.

Shizune wondered if Naruto blamed himself for their deaths. If so, she would make sure that he wouldn't die doing that – he had helped too many people to die regretting deaths of his important people.

Her hands shifted to the bowl of water beside her and cleansed her blood hands with a swift movement. How come that war never made anyone happy? Of course there were the people who celebrated as soon as the war was over, but how many days and nights would pass before they realised how terrible it had been…

War must be avoided at all cost…

-

"_Naruto?"_

"_I love you"_

"_yeah"_

"_how am I supposed to live…?"_

"_you're bleeding"_

"_I fought."_

"_he's dead! He died!"_

"…_I can see that"_

"_TSUNADE!"_

"…_knowing his blood is on my hands"_

"_you'll die! Die kyuubi! Die!"_

"_Tohru's parents are dead"_

"_where did you go!? Why did you leave us!?"_

"_no!"_

"_four years…Akatsuki has held me tightly"_

_"Naruto?"_

"_Naruto?"_

"_Naruto?"_

_"Naruto?"_

"_Naruto?"_

"_Naruto?" _

_"Naruto?"_

_**"open your eyes…."**_

"..."

"Sakura…chan?"

-

Naruto's eyes opened slowly as he felt the softness of a bed underneath him. He felt heavy, tired and his body ached. The sight of the ceiling above him made him narrow his eyes though.

This was not the Hokage tower.

Voices reached Naruto's eyes. They were coming from the hallway outside of the room. They were low and whispered in a language foreign to his. His eyes were heavy and he found it hard to even try and understand what it was they spoke of. Was it him? Were they the ones who had spoken so strangely to him?

It seemed like ages before the doors opened, and greeted the bedridden Hokage. Naruto flashed him a pained grin, apologizing for not being able to shake his hand. The man had a pleasant look in his face as he sat down beside Naruto, explaining just who he was.

"I'm the highest ranked in this country and I have heard of you from far and wide, so it quite an honour having you here" his tone turned more serious as the conversation continued. "I'm concerned with this travelling of yours. With the kyuubi poisoning you, Konoha will soon see them with the loss of yet another Hokage. It will not bring harmony to the ninja countries. It certainly will not"

Naruto's eyes flickered from the officer to the ceiling once more. "I know, but that's not much else I can do for the sake of Konoha. If this is going to kill me, then I want to be remembered as one who fought to the end."

The officer smiled. "Jirayia-sama has of that already explained. I would done just as thee Hokage-sama, it just merely concerns me, and I would in all times protect the country of fire, if we of course, are promised protection as well. Our location isn't the best of choices, lying in between countries of vas in size. It would be great if we were to have a mutual agreement and contract."

Things were going so well.

-

"_Naruto?"_

"_I love you"_

"_yeah"_

"_how am I supposed to live…?"_

"_you're bleeding"_

"_I fought."_

"_he's dead! He died!"_

"…_I can see that"_

"_TSUNADE!"_

"…_knowing his blood is on my hands"_

"_you'll die! Die kyuubi! Die!"_

"_Tohru's parents are dead"_

"_where did you go!? Why did you leave us!?"_

"_no!"_

"_four years…Akatsuki has held me tightly"_

_"Naruto?"_

"_Naruto?"_

"_Naruto?"_

_"Naruto?"_

"_Naruto?"_

"_Naruto?" _

_"Naruto?"_

_**"open your eyes…."**_

"..."

"Sakura…chan?"

-

_What were those green eyes that greeted him with a smile? "Open your eyes.."_

-

FINALLY! After weeks and weeks of homework + crap, I've managed to write a chapter! It's not long! But this will have to do until I'm off for studybreak! :D :D :D :D

If anything's confusing please do ask!


	32. Book 2 chapter 3

There are sometimes in the life of man that a single fault can break him

There are sometimes in the life of man that a single fault can break him. A man who is arrogant and selfish is broken once he realises that there's something more important than him. He will fall on his knees and weep, because this would mean that everything in his world has been wrong – he will be like newborn seeing light for the first time.

Clouds in the sky welcome every person who falls on their knees. However, do they greet a man too proud to see the reality in front of him?

Jiraiya looked at the stubborn man in the window. Pure will had made him able to stand and admire the sight over the forest, in the small country. Pure will had made him go through tiring meetings and endless discussions – and it was all for the safety of Konoha. When would it occur to Naruto that what he was doing would kill him?

Worlds of endless sorrow would leave the troubled Hokage, but what horrible disasters would come after him? Was Jiraiya wrong on it? Did Naruto really once fall on his knees and see the realities of this world?

"We have to leave now Kiddo. Before it gets too dark, you know what it's like out there. We live in dangerous times"

Why did he call the Hokage for Kiddo? The boy was by far both stronger and wiser than the elder gentleman. Naruto's eyes seemed distant as if watching something that Jiraiya couldn't see.

It was with few words that the usual carefree guy, made the sannin sure of what material the Hokage was made of.

"Sasuke."

He thought hard.

"Sasuke is back…Sakura's dead…"

"How?"

"how can Sasuke be back" he clenched his hand. "why did Akatsuki kill Sakura?"

Jiraiya stopped Naruto. "hey hey, no one says it was Akatsuki…"

"I _know _it was. Akatsuki is trying something…they have something planned. They were probably the ones who made sure that Sasuke could be resurrected, but how? How? _How?"_

The sannin frowned before crossing his arms. "Maybe…"

"… maybe it is so that Orochimaru transferred Sasuke's soul from someone else, and if we take a look on who was sacrificed it makes sense. Sakura must have been tricked into delivering Sasuke's new body, because it was her parents who were sacrificed. Maybe they used them as a way of blackmailing her? And with two sacrifices, Orochimaru could easily bring forward Sasuke's memories."

Naruto turned and looked at him. "what? A child? How do you?"

"Sasuke died less than a decade ago. Whatever he was reincarnated as, he could not be more than 9 years old. So the sacrifice that was made, was a child…and I have this feeling that Sakura was the one bringing the child to…"

"what!? Are you saying that Sakura was…was sacrificing a **child**?" the look on Naruto's face said it all. Disbelief.

"no..no…that's not like her! She would never have done that! This is Sakura! She would never have sacrificed a child – she's str – she…was…stronger than that" his face turned to the ground, as he came to think of the events that had happened.

Jiraiya was silent, pitying the man.

"…maybe she was forced to…" he tried to say comfortingly.

Naruto waved his hands at the man. "No…"

"…she…was changed. I…thought I knew her, but…people change. We have been six years apart…if not more…she…was unknown to me."

-

"_open your eyes"_

_And what he saw would be the brightest coloured eyes he had ever seen._

_-_

"…" Jirayia swallowed hard, and tucked his hand inside his jacket. "we better get moving"

Naruto glanced sadly at the horizon.

"yeah…"

-

"_I love you"_

_Naruto looked up surprised. His blue eyes were wide as he stared at the Hyuuga woman. Her white eyes smiled insecure at him and she held her hands tightly in a ball. _

"_what?" he pronounced with a high shrieking voice._

"_do…do…do I have to say it again?" she looked at her own belly button_

_Naruto stood still, and with a pitying expression he crossed his arms and thinned his lips. "Is…do you mean it? Because…you know..it…it is a big thing to say."_

_She looked at him determinded and opened her mouth._

_-_

"_Sakura! I love you!" she stopped in her tracks and turned her face to him. Wide green eyes met the Hokage, who stared at her so hard that she felt like she was going to break._

"_ok.."_

_-_

"_I love you." Hinata's voice, determinded with courage he had never seen before, broke through him._

_He smiled and took her hand._

_-_

_Sakura walked away._

_-_

Naruto looked at the sky, wondering…

…would Sakura truly sacrifice a child?

And if she did.

Why?

How?

Would she ever be the Sakura he knew?

…

Why?

The elder sannin had decided to walk ahead of Naruto, telling him that the kyuubi wasn't too strong today…it was something with the moon, and he would make sure that the village ahead was prepared for them.

Naruto stared at the blue sky and found it so ever refreshing. It brought a smile on his slightly scarred face.

Heavenly sounds erupted from the trees as a breeze flew across the lands. He felt alive…more alive than he had done in days.

Leaves fell to the ground…and even with his heart burdened by sorrow, he couldn't help but think of the world as good…and things would get better. Yes, they would get better.

Naruto's eyes felt heavy…

His feet were heavy…

The heaven above him grew further and further away, as he suddenly found himself falling to the ground. The blue heavenly stroke of the sky, replaced with a cold darkness.

He didn't even feel himself hit the ground.

-

Naruto couldn't open his eyes, but he knew he was laying on a futon. The soft madras curled up against his tired and aching body. His head felt heavy as if he had been drugged and he tried his best to focus on something.

Footsteps approached him in a light manner. It was the sounds of sandals against a wooden floor, and it made him able to focus. It was a woman…

A hand touched his fevered face tenderly, and he felt like he knew those hands.

"Naruto"

His hand clutched the sheet hard.

"open your eyes"

He did, and everything was blurry.

But he knew one thing.

The eyes that met him were the brightest of greens.

-

A/N: You'll only get short chapters from now on! It's hard for me to write much with the amount of schoolwork I have!

Selina over and out!


	33. Book 2 chapter 4

She removed her hand and smiled kindly. Naruto blinked and was surprised to see Temari's face look at him proudly. Behind her stood a vast amount of sand ninjas, with their hands on their hips, looking just as content as their princess.

"Uzumaki Naruto, you surely gave everyone here a fright. Stop just collapsing in the middle of the road – assasins roam freely these days. What would we have done if they had seized the opportunity to kill you!" like a mother she brought him into a warm hug and placed her head untop of his, visibly showing care.

"you remind me so much of my own brothers! Oh Naruto! If you knew how dear you are to us"

Wrestling free of her grip, Naruto laughed nervously – feeling, disappointed that it was Temari who had awoken him. However, he knew as well that dreams of a dead Sakura arising would be too much, and too unrealistic.

She scooted closer and her face turned serious in a way only she could make it be serious. "Naruto."

"hm?" he said, narrowing his own eyes.

"why did you collapse?"

Everyone in the room turned their heads in their direction, obviously being just as curious. Temari put her hand on his now raised knee. "you know the sand is with you, your secret will not escape this room."

A moment of silence passed, before Naruto opened his mouth. "the kyuubi…has taken more control of me than I wished. It is…poisoning me. I don't understand that!? Why would it try to kill me, it would know it would kill itself as well!"

The room went more silent than before, and Temari's eyes were so wide that you could clearly see the veins passing the eyeball. Her hand on his knew grew tighter and so did her breath. Unpleasant news it was. Most unpleasant.

"poisoning…damnit. Damnit Naruto!" she stood up and furiously threw her hands to each side of herself. "I can't believe it!"

"well…it's only what Shizune says, it might just be a simple cold." He tried to interrupt, but she was in too much distress to even care about that.

He then turned his attention to the other sand ninja beside him, who gazed her own feet worriedly. Naruto tried to smile despite the pain, and muttered "well…where are we?"

She looked at him hesitantly.

"we're in a small inn along the road. With hotbaths, very popular amongst common people. We thought it would be the best place to rest for the night, until we found you. Are you alright Hokage-sama"

Naruto shrugged and cracked his shoulders. "I have been better, a bit sore and dizzy." He smiled. People would always be so confused on how Naruto could smile in even the worst scenarious. When Naruto thought about it, the only person, besides Jirayia and Tsunade who had seen him being unable, it was Sakura. In the end, he guessed, no one would ever understand him as well as Sakura – he could marry the kindest of women and have her be a psychic, but Sakura would forever know him much better.

This made his smile flatter a bit and his heart hurt. If he had just saved Sasuke back then – then none of this would ever have happened, and he would be sitting right here, right now, with both of them.

He placed a hand to his head and made it go through his hair.

A sad looking woman entered the room with a tray full of food. Temari did never acknowledge her presence, as she was busy complaining, half crying and half exclaiming how they had to bring Naruto to the sand. "we have better doctors after all!"

The melanchoclic woman placed the tray on his side, and he gazed at her long brown hair. Feeling a bit better asked. "why is it you look so traumatised?" She turned her brown eyes to his blue, and she spoke with an insecure voice. "My…nephew was kidnapped."

"kidnapped?"

"yeah…little over two weeks ago. No one has seen or heard of him since. We fear very much that he….might be dead." Naruto narrowed his eyes. "a boy?"

"yeah…eight years old." Her eyes watered, "a sweet memorable boy. We have asked everyone in the nearest villages, and all we got is that a woman had taken him…"

Eyes wide Naruto realized. "excuse me! Uhm – what was the name of the boy?"

"Kozuki…"

"okay! I think I know what happened to your nephew! He's not dead – but …well, you wouldn't understand, but I can say he's not dead." She took a step back and even Temari had the time to look up and stare at them. "He…is the reincarnation of a great ninja, who is now on the loose! I…bet if we had enough information about, Kozuki?, then we would be able to stop them! This is great!"

"now wait a minute Naruto!" Temari yelled. "you are not going anywhere! You're coming with us to Sand. This is not healthy for you at all!" the woman beamed and hugged the unaware Hokage, who just stood there stiff, not expecting this at all.

The stubborn sandwoman grabbed Naruto by the shoulder, and forced him out of the embrace, and shook him. "what are you saying!? You cannot do this!" despite the pain, he was beaming. "yes! We are going to the sand! Temari! You must allow me into your secret library…" she narrowed her eyes.

"what? Why?"

"get Jirayia! Tell him to continue the bargain with other countries. If I can find what I am looking for, then I can turn all of this around! We can get…Kozuki, right? … we can get him back!"

"stop it Naruto! All we should focus on is making you healthy – do something about the Kyuubi"

Naruto was about to object, when the brownhaired woman interrupted. "can you get Kozuki back?"

Temari looked at him, and he looked at the woman, before the sandwoman frowned. "fine, if you want to play hero, then I won't stop you."

Everything would be alright.

-

It had not been long ago since Naruto had found himself walking in the dusty streets of the capital of Sand. It was never as colourful or warm as Konoha was, with it brightly coloured street houses and vendors. However, the home of the Kazekage had its own charm – the building may have a dull colour or even a sandy look – but within the home's of the citizens – there was plants as large as humans and an aroma of the most delicious of dishes. The inside was more brighter and colourfull than any house in Konoha could ever be. Naruto would have considered living there if it wasn't because he was Hokage.

At first he thought that Konoha's library was large, but what greeted him in the sand was much grander. A whole building underground, solely for the purpose of hiding valuable documents for the government. Even though Naruto was Hokage and severely weak, he was guarded by one of the most toptrained ninjas from the village – in case he went on to look for something else.

The areas with legends or even proved legends were small, and not as large as the one's containing ninjutsus or dangerous kind of stuff. The guardian went outside, and Naruto was left to go through all the records by himself.

Days would go by, too many days. Sometimes a medic had to rush to his side, when Naruto felt too weak. Other times Naruto found himself thinking of things – tragic things, like if Sakura really was dead, if Sasuke really was Sasuke, and how much he'd like to rewind stuff.

Too many days passed.

-

"_there's this…thing between us Naruto. One that will make us best of friends and it will be the same thing that will tear us apart__" Sasuke said very casually that night, when he attacked Naruto and Sakura – that dreadful night long ago._

"_we're promising in all aspects of life. In the arts of ninja and more – and we both know tradegies. This makes us _such_ good friends, but also _perfect _enemies"_

"_Sasuke. Stop it. Come back" Naruto cried_

"_No! you don't understand! You have none to kill! You do not know what it is like!"_

"_Sasuke! " Sakura cried_

"_fools!"_

_-_

"a place, only known to that who can see with bloody eyes, belongs to noone except those who cannot speak for themselves. Defeat those of stronger mind, and one can see fate as it would be. Those who want to can change all by the request of them who cannot be seen. A place hidden where earth meets water and where wind meets fire – that is the place where you go, when there is no one left to go to…"

Gaara looked curiously at Naruto, when the blond haired hokage softly spoke of the legend. Temari held hers and Shikamaru's child tightly in her arms, and gazed at her baby brother. "brother, is that not the legend of the place that does not exist?"

He nodded.

Naruto turned his face to them, as if expecting them to explain what it is about. They were silent until Gaara tapped his finger. "we know very little of the place, and it's placement we do not know either – but, as far as I have heard, through the ancients – then this place is supposed to be able to grant any wish to anyone. Of course, it isn't easy."

This made the Hokage beam with excitement, even though it took it's strains on his body. Gaara frowned, which was a seldom look on his face. His wife clenched her fists and gazed at Naruto with disappointed eyes. "Naruto. This is just a legend, no place like that exists…"

"well…I will try and find it. Prove that it exists!"

Temari frowned deeper. "don't be foolish. You should focus on your disease and ending this war. Just because people don't fight, doesn't mean it is over"

He waved his hand carelessly "yeah. Shikamaru is much better at that, he's in charge of that."

"Naruto! You're the Hokage! Don't be so careless! This is my husband whom you're speaking of! And he's is _not_ the Hokage! Act like you're a leader. You cannot fail Konoha now!"

He smiled. "I won't."

"I will undo all of this. And make it work – I am Naruto Uzumaki after-"

"stop it! Get real! Be realistic! This is…this is insane! You'll die before you'll even get there."

Naruto smiled. "no I won't…Kyuubi won't risk it. I'll find it Temari!"

A Konoha representative stepped inside. "Hokage-sama! This is outrageous! We must not get too calm! We need you alive, and if you risk your life like this – then we'll have to elect a new Hokage!"

Naruto still smiled. "don't worry. I know who to go to."

He stood up and pointed at the Konoha ninja. "you. Bring Tohru to this village Asap!"

He then pointed at the librarian. "you! Figure out when this poem was made – and find every map of the ninja countries! We need to figure out what they mean of earth wind fire and water connecting."

People looked at each other concerned, but they none the less did what they were told.

-

Tohru looked up startled as she saw the moon flicker in the skies. "Sakura-sama…"

"…"

A pale ghostly figure emerged on the street, soon followed by many others. "what is this?"

Frightened by what she saw, she stepped back into the room of the hospital. "this…is what you saw Sakura-sama?"

Angry and sad,she yelled. "how dare you give it back to me! I do not want it!"

-

A/N. hahaha. If you want my honest opinion – this story is getting crazier and crazier. Oh well! I'm back! After many months of severe depressive periods, I'm back to update Rokudaime! I will do my best to update again – I have found the spark again. To write more 'days of our lives' fanfictions. Haahahaha. Hope you like!


	34. Book 2 chapter 5

"Where fire meets wind and where earth meets water". Naruto gasped as he needed to steady himself against the wall. He could feel the rough surface of the sand walls pulling in his skin. "a hot misty place in a swamp."

"could that be it"

A ninja stopped in the hall and went up to the Hokage. "Hokage-sama are you alright? Shall I call on a medic?"

"no. really. I am fine"

"…if you say so sir…" he rose and walked away, leaving Naruto all on his own. He closed his eyes hard, seeing bright colours flash before him. A loud and clear voice spoke to him. "_ho ho ho. A hot misty place in a swamp? What is it you speak of?"_

Naruto clenched his hand, knowing exactly who spoke to him. "Kyuubi"

"_I know exactly what it is, and where it is. Tailed beasts were born from there. Ho ho ho. But you will never find it"_

"go away."

"_ho ho ho. Even if you found it, you would never ask for peace or protection…I know what you'll ask for…"_

" I said go away!"

"_a lover's resurrection"_

The wall broke and fell, the sandy dust covering the entire hallway. His hand hurt from the blow, and he clenched it and fell forward on his knees. He gasped for breath and heard the hurried steps from people rushing towards him. This. He could not take this.

"Naruto!"

"Naruto!"

"Naruto!"

-

_Far away, far, far away, green eyes greeted ever lasting sunrise._

_-_

Shikamaru gazed into the glowing ball with folded hands, his usual uncaring expression was replaced with a harsh and worried look. The blond haired sand woman, with a dark haired child on her arm stared back through the illuminated ball.

"so…he's been getting worse?"

"_yes. Yesterday there was reports of him talking to people who were not there – and he is searching for some imaginary place"_

"oh…imaginiary land?"

"_yes."_

A moment passed between them.

"_I…I do not feel well about saying this, but…maybe we should …just make you Hokage already. He…may not have long again."_

"Temari. I will not become Hokage, I refuse to be, until he is no longer in this world, or until he says it himself" he said stubbornly.

Temari frowned and readjusted the child in her arms. "_You cannot seriously mean that. What about the wellbeing of Konoha?"_

"I do mean that. Naruto may not be right at the moment, but I wish to still stay here until his return. I'm am confident in knowing that he is on the track of something."

"_Shikamaru…"_

"No. No Temari. We cannot loose faith in him. We have not done so before, and so we shall not begin to" his gaze was stern and hard, making his girlfriend realise that no matter how many reasonable arguments and threatful glances. Shikamaru would not allow Naruto's dream to be given away this carelessly.

"_I see"_

The ball flickered and it's light died out and left the Hokage office illuminated by the dark moon. Shikamaru could not help but hate the world and it's obscure and insensitive ways. He dared never to sit in Naruto's chair, it belonged to him. He had no nostalgic feelings for this room either. The dark blood stained floor still had not let go of the blue writings from the ritual Orochimaru had peformed here.

He bent down and touched the dried blood, thinking of how many who had possibly died for just a taste of the power, being a Hokage brought. Shikamaru himself would never in his entire life desire this and its responsibilities – but somehow he always knew he would end up sitting there, ruling and guiding the people of the fire country. It was though not a dream and he hated it with his guts.

Shizune opened the door, and stared at the melancholic ninja sitting on the floor.

It had to get better soon.

It had to.

-

Tohru had with hasty steps approached the room where Naruto stayed in the wind capital. Temari had a stern and angry hand on her shoulder, leading her roughly through the hallways. They had not said a word to each other since the tiny girl had arrived after a three day journey. She was tired and really just wanted to go and sleep, but her body ached to see the Hokage well and happy. She wanted to talk to him…

A month had passed and there had still not been any visible progress in either finding Sakura or restoring peace. Shizune had even spoken to her of Naruto with great sadness…the young girl wanted to know why.

The door to the room she was lead in at, was enourmes sand door.

"whe…"

"the library" Temari said quickly and opened the door and dragged her down the long corridors and stairs. Every wall they passed with covered with ancient scrolls, torn and worn books, and new manuscripts. She couldn't help but awe at the sight, and would have stopped in her tracks, if the older woman had not forced her to go on.

"why is he in the library?"

Temari hissed. "killing himself. That is what he is doing."

The corridors went on, and the books became darker and darker and more sinister with every step. The words that appeared on their backs, stood in languages she could not understand. The rooms then without warning became dark, and only a small light ahead, gave them some idea where to go. Temari did not even flinch, but Tohru felt frightened by the aura that they hastily approached.

She had been trained enough to sense who was who, and this surely felt like Naruto, but…

The leak of brutality and lust was overwhelming.

What…had happened to him.

The light grew stronger, and the shadow of a man looking through thousands of books became clearer. His hair was spiky but dull. His face full of excitement, but was tired. His blue eyes didn't seem as blue as they used to.

Tohru though…felt an anxious presence.

Temari pushed her towards the table and crossed her arms. "Tohru-san is here. So…what you need her for"

The smaller girl surpressed a gasp when the Hokage looked up at her. He looked…different. So different…he had visible cheekbones. Naruto looked as if he was deadly sick.

"Naruto-sama!" she exclaimed and took at step forward. He smiled and stood up. "Tohru-chan. You are here, great!"

She stopped and stood there worridly. "I…you asked for me."

He smiled even brighter. "I did! And it is so wonderful that you've come here! See I need you to help me! How are your earth skills coming? You can use them?"

Tohru moved nervously from side to side, thinking how ironic it was. The first time she met him she would do anything in her power to defy him and humiliate him, but here she was, standing in front of the weakest state she'd ever seen him in – and..she was nervous.

"I…can move earth, that is all. No techniques…so…I'm not that great"

The weakened Hokage still beamed and went on about how great this was.

Temari and Tohru exchanged a brief look.

Both wondering what the hell he was up to.

-

_Ever lasting sunrise._

_-_

Ino, Neiji and Kiba looked at the great room in front of them. Why had they been assigned to lead the small child Tohru here? And been asked not to leave for Konoha? What was this all about, it made no sense. Should they not worry about going back to rebuild Konoha and it's defence. No.

They were going treasure hunting.

-

"_so! Tohru and the rest of us are going to hunt down and old legend"_

_Neiji sighed. "have you gone mad? A legend?"_

_Naruto smiled brightly. "yes! We're going to search for an ancient city, where a wish can be granted"_

_Ino threw her arms into the air. "He IS crazy!"_

"_no! I'm not! Kyuu-"_

_The blond haired woman kicked the table. "enough Naruto! This is going to far! We've just gotten out of a war less than a month ago! We do not have time to go treasure hunting!"_

"_But Kyuubi said…"_

"_I DO NOT CARE WHAT KYUUBI SAID! HE IS MESSING WITH YOUR HEAD!"_

_-_

"…why are we going anyway?" asked Ino as the sand blew against their covered bodies, as they made their way through the sand towards the fire country once more.

Neji shrugged. "because we simply can't say no to him – and I guess…somehow we believe he has got something."

Kiba sat quietly on Akamaru and stared at the limping Hokage. He frowned. "he looks more sick than the last time I saw him."

Ino readjusted the bag on her shoulder. "maybe it is Kyuubi taking over his body. It might lead him into a trap."

A moment of silence passed between them.

The hyuuga man then said something that made a lot more sense. "maybe that's why we're here."

"huh?" they both replied.

"we're his bodyguards. Ino's able to take control of his mind and push the tailed beast bag. I will be able to protect us if Kyuubi goes loose and Kiba will be able to smell if Kyuubi gets too strong."

Yes.

They would protect him with their lives.

-


End file.
